Run Away From the Pain
by glenlivet19
Summary: It started out as a business arrangement. It grew into something more. End of Season 3 and Season 4. Warning: Dark themes, violence, child abuse, angst. Rated M for sexual content, language and subject matter.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"_One more year. One more year."_

That was her mantra as she ran. It was all she could think about. She had worked so hard and come so far, and it all boiled down to keeping her head above water for just one more year. She was sure that she could do it, but it didn't pay to get cocky. She still needed to be careful about the money. That's why she lived in such a crappy shithole of a studio apartment, that's why she slept on a second-hand futon instead of a bed, that's why she had no TV and only a small portable radio/CD player for company. Too much of her hard-earned money had to go right back into work stuff, the stupid costumes and the weekly waxing. God, she would be happy when she didn't have to get waxed anymore. She hated having her pubes look like a 10-year-old girl's.

She had reached her turn-around point and headed back to her apartment. Her feet slapped hard on the pavement and she knew it was time for some new running shoes. That was her big spurge, expensive running shoes. You needed good ones for running or your feet would be paying for it. And with the job she had, she couldn't afford to have sore feet. It was hard enough spending all night in 4-inch heels as it was.

It was early August and hot as hell. There were four more weeks before school started again. Four more weeks of doing this sucky job five nights a week, and then she could cut back to two nights a week. She couldn't wait, although the cut in pay would be difficult to deal with. One more year and she would never look at a box of Cup-A-Noodles or Hamburger Helper again.

She reached her apartment building and sprinted up the three flights of stairs to her small studio. She always liked the rush of that last push as she raced up the stairs. She jogged in place at the top of the stairs to cool down a bit, and then she did a few stretches. Once inside the studio, she stripped off her running clothes and headed for the shower. Time to wash off the sweat and get ready for work. If she were lucky, maybe there would be some hot water tonight. Another thing that she looked forward to when this part of her life was over: a constant supply of wonderful hot water.

"_One more year. One more year."_

__

Greg House had had a crappy day. Just as he figured out the diagnosis, his patient coded. His team of fellows worked on the guy for 45 minutes before they called time-of-death. He tried to shrug it off; at least he had solved the puzzle and that's what mattered to him. An autopsy would prove his diagnosis correct. Cuddy cornered him later and sent him to do clinic duty. House hated clinic duty. It was boring; running noses and crotches to be swabbed and dealt with. He had argued with her about going; after all, his patient just _died_ and he was _upset._ She saw right through his charade and sent him anyway, threatening to add more hours if he didn't spend the rest of the afternoon there. He grumbled but went, as he certainly didn't want more hours added to his "prison sentence".

At the end of his horrible day, House was quite ready to hoist a few beers with his best friend James Wilson. He barged into Wilson's office at 5PM and said: "McNally's tonight?"

Wilson hesitantly said: "No. I can't go."

House looked him over. Wilson had put on a fresh shirt and a different tie. He was all pressed and natty looking.

House frowned: "Why not? Rough day, I need to get drunk and you need to come with."

Wilson said slowly: "I have a date. Second date with Connie from Peds. You know, the blonde with the 38DD's."

House groaned; he knew that nurse and she was quite a looker. It was no wonder that Wilson was hot for her.

Wilson checked his hair in the mirror and unnecessarily smoothed it down: "You know, her last boyfriend dumped her only a month ago. She needs a shoulder to cry on, and that would be me."

House smirked: "Oh, yeah. Your patented panty-peeler routine is about to score for you again. First they cry on your shoulder because you are _such a_ _sympathetic friend_ and the next thing they know their panties are coming off and your Johnson has found a nice new warm home."

Wilson's smirk was bigger than House's: "Hey, I stick with what works, and I get results with this. I have a 95% success rate."

House said incredulously: "You keep statistics?"

He shook his head in disgust, walked out of Wilson's office and back into his own. He grabbed his things and headed out.

House rode around for a while on his motorcycle. He didn't really have anywhere special in mind; sometimes he just rode for the hell of it. He'd find a side road and just turn down it to see what was there. This is how he ended up at Body Shots. He was on an unfamiliar road, still in Mercer County, but outside of Princeton, when he saw the club. It looked discreet and far enough away from the hospital that he wouldn't run into anyone he knew. He parked the bike and entered the club.

After paying a $20 admission fee and being told he had to buy at least two overpriced drinks, House found a seat. He took a small table on the left side of the stage. A waitress, wearing only a tiny G-string, brought him a very expensive glass of scotch on the rocks and he kicked back to watch the show.

It was the usual assortment of strippers and pole dancers in various costumes that were slowly removed. The girls collected dollar bills in their garters and he happily contributed a few of them. There was one girl who really took his interest. She came out in a little sailor suit and strutted her stuff as she slowly took it off. She had the most fantastic pair of legs that House had ever seen. They were lean and muscular and looked great in those high heels. House briefly wondered if she were a runner; her legs were that good. Then he pushed that thought from his brain because she was dancing his way and looking right at him. Her big blue eyes had a come-hither look and House found himself physically responding. As he stuffed a fiver in her garter, he wondered if she provided any 'extras' for the patrons of the club; he certainly wanted to find out. One had to be discreet about this kind of thing though, because that assuredly crossed the line into the illegal zone.

The show ended and the girls pranced off the stage. After a few minutes, House was surprised to see the dancers walk into the barroom still wearing only their G-strings and heels. He quickly noted that providing lap dances was a part of their job also. He looked around for the leggy brunette and then he spotted her. She was walking towards him with a sultry smile on her face.

She stopped right in front of him and said: "Hi, I'm Randi. Would you like some company?"

He looked her up and down. She was even better looking close up. Besides those great legs, her breasts looked to be a perfect 36C and he was positive that they were natural and not enhanced.

Slowly he said: "Company would be nice."

"I can sit next to you and we can chat while you buy me an overpriced drink. Or, for fifty, I can sit on your lap for a while."

His eyebrows rose. Fifty was expensive for a lap dance. She could tell what he was thinking by the look on his face. "We cater to an elite clientele. The prices keep the riffraff out."

"Your boss tell you to say that?"

She just smiled and tilted her head to the side.

He liked the looks of her and decided to spring for the lap dance. He pulled out a fifty and handed it to her. She tucked it in her garter and then straddled his legs.

He growled out a warning: "Don't put too much pressure on my right thigh. War wound."

She nodded solemnly and carefully climbed on his lap. She had good strong legs and found it wasn't so hard to balance her weight mostly on his left side. She wrapped her arms around his neck; his face just inches from her breasts and started to slowly grind against his crotch.

"Where can I put my hands?"

"Anywhere you want, except under the G-string."

Now this was different. In most clubs, you could put your hands on a girl's waist or on her legs, but not her boobs or ass. He decided to test it by placing both hands on her ass. She smiled at the contact and continued to grind slowly against his crotch.

House smiled back. Now this was worth the extra money.

One hand moved up to cup her breast and he asked: "And where can I put my lips?" His thumb played over her nipple as he spoke.

She sounded regretful as she said: "Not below the shoulders. And trust me the bouncers are watching."

"So I can do this," House proceeded to kiss her neck.

"Umm, hmm," she moaned.

'_Jesus, Christ'_, House thought. '_She keeps this up and I'm going to come in_ _my pants'_. He tried to remember the last time he had had sex. It had been a month or so since he last saw Paula, his favorite hooker. That was the time she told him that she was moving to D.C. Since she left, he hadn't called the agency back for a new girl. As far as a date/free sex was concerned, the last one had been so long ago, that he couldn't remember when.

By now he had moved both hands to her breasts and was cupping them and thumbing her nipples. She gently ran her fingers through his hair and planted little kisses on his cheek and ear while continuing to grind against the bulge in his jeans. His erection was getting to the painful stage and he needed a release soon.

He moved his lips up to her ear: "What if a guy wants a little bit more action than this?"

She whispered in his ear: "Are you a cop?"

He chuckled: "Not hardly. I'm a horny, pill-popping doctor."

She scrutinized him for a moment, and then tilted her head towards the back of the club. "See the goon at the back door? I'm going to walk through that door, give me two minutes and then you follow. We can't make it too public; ya know what I mean? You'll have to give him a password. Since you're a doctor, I'll use my favorite: 'trigeminal neuralgia'. That drives the goon crazy; he can't even pronounce it."

"Big word for a little girl like you."

He could see anger flash in her eyes, just for a moment, and then it passed. He was amused that she let herself become upset at his little dig.

She whispered in his ear: "I like BIG things. Let's head to the back and you can show me what a big boy you are."

She nipped his ear and then climbed off of his lap. He watched her ass sashay across the room. She stopped and said something to the goon and then proceeded through the door.

House gave her a couple of minutes and then stood up. He swallowed the last of this scotch and headed to the back door.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Randi didn't care for his remark about 'big word for a little girl'. What, he thought she was dumb cuz she was a stripper? He seemed OK until that remark but if he really was a doctor, he had money and could afford her. Maybe she would take a chance and see if she could get him as a regular client outside of the club. That would really help her financial situation after school started next month.

She took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh. _I'm so pathetic. I'm actually_ _hoping this guy likes me enough to become his regular whore._ Randi felt tears starting, and she shook her head violently to stop them. This was not the time or the place for that. _One more year,_ she told herself again. _One more year of getting on my knees for money and then it will be over._

She heard footsteps and quickly checked her makeup. The threatened tears had not fallen and her makeup was not smeared. She fluffed her hair a little bit and then turned to face the door.

Randi had only seen the Doc sitting down. He wasn't kidding when he said he had an injured leg. He walked with a cane and had a significant limp. She briefly wondered if it really was a war wound, decided it didn't matter and walked towards him.

House stepped through the open doorway and surveyed the room. It was small and unappealing, its contents consisting of a small wardrobe, a sagging sofa, a table with a make-up mirror and a straight back chair. He pondered what might be living in that sofa's dirty fabric. He didn't really want to sit his naked ass down on it.

The room was really gross, but standing in the middle of it was this beautiful naked woman. House's jeans started to grow tighter as he looked at her. He limped over to her and placed his left hand on her hip.

"Grimy little place you have here," he said.

Randi nodded: "Yeah, it is." She placed one hand on each of his biceps and gave them a little squeeze. _Nice musculature_, she thought.

"Tell me what you would like."

"Tell me what it will cost me. Judging from the price of the lap dance, this is definitely the high rent side of town, although you wouldn't know it from the décor in here."

Randi licked her lips and started kissing his cheek. She planted slow little kisses on his cheek and jaw. In between kisses, she whispered in his ear: "Like I said before, the prices keep the riff-raff out. A BJ is $150; straight sex is $300. The club gets half of everything, that's why it's so much."

He brushed the hair away from her neck and started nibbling just above her collarbone. Randi shivered from the sensation. It was rare that she physically reacted to one of her clients, but the Doc seemed different from the usual losers that she serviced. For one thing, he smelled really good. She didn't know what type of aftershave he was wearing, but it smelled expensive. Weird that he wore aftershave at all since he probably had a 4- day growth of stubble on his face. The scent was subtle, not put on with a heavy hand like so many guys will do. And just under the scent was a very masculine smell, almost musky.

"So where can my lips go now? Further south, I hope?"

"Anywhere you want. Tell me what you want and we'll get the money part out of the way and have some fun."

"Hmmm, I don't know what I want. I'm sampling the wares right now." House cupped her breast and licked his way down to her nipple. He laved it with his tongue and then took it in his mouth and sucked on it. He reveled in the gasp that exploded from her lips. House dropped his cane and with his right hand on her ass, pressed her into his pelvis. Randi let out a little moan and her fingers started playing in his hair. She could feel his hard cock as he ground against her. It had been a long time since she felt this turned on. She was actually starting to hope he wanted more than just a BJ because she really wanted to fuck him.

Her hand moved down to his belt and she fumbled with it. "Why don't we lose some of these clothes? They're just in the way."

He lifted his head and she could see the arousal in his eyes.

"This isn't the most comfortable location. What would it take to get you to come back to my place?"

Randi's heart leapt. He must be really interested if he wanted to pay for an all-nighter. The price was hefty, though, and she wasn't sure how he would take it.

"I'm supposed to work until 2AM. If I tell them that I have a client, they will let me leave at 1AM. But it's $1000 for the night."

He looked sharply at her: "Because they get half, right?"

She nodded: "Right."

She could see he was debating; it was a steep price and she knew he could get an all-nighter from the agency for $500, which is what she would charge if she could go solo.

Leaning up to whisper in his ear, she said: "How about this? You sit in the chair and I'll give you a nice BJ or I'll climb on board and ride you, whichever you'd prefer. You have to pay double price this one time. If you like it, I'll slip you my cell number. If you're still up at 2AM, call me and I'll come over and spend the rest of the night with you and you'll only pay $500 for the whole evening including what you spend right now."

House frowned. "You won't be getting the whole rate. You have to split part of this with them."

"I know, but I'm not staying the whole night either. This is a one-time offer so you can get to know me better."

She pulled back and looked in his eyes. Randi could see desire and doubt. She had to push that doubt away. Quickly, she unbuckled his belt and unzipped his jeans. She slipped her hand into his boxers and took his shaft into her hand. He hissed at the contact.

"Hmmmm, Doc, you _are_ a big boy."

She kissed his neck as she stroked his cock. Suddenly he grabbed her face and lifted her chin. He kissed her full on the mouth and she pulled back in surprise. The clients never kissed her on the mouth. It was a universal rule.

House smirked: "You said I could kiss you anywhere. Didn't you mean that?"

She figured he knew the rules, but he seemed the type to wanna break them.

She grabbed him by the face and planted her lips on his. Her tongue begged for entrance; he parted his lips and allowed her in. Her tongue teased and played with his as her hips slowly ground against him. As they kissed, Randi could feel his excitement increase. House came up for air long enough to ask: "So I can touch you anywhere now? Under the G-string?"

"Yes," Randi breathed her response into the mouth.

As their lips melded together again, House slid his hand under the small scrap of fabric. He wanted to see if she was as turned on as she seemed or if she was a rather decent actress.

As his hand moved over her Mound of Venus, he asked: "You wax?"

Randi could hear the disappointment in his voice. She looked away, biting her lip. "They make us do it. A lot of the clients prefer it that way."

House thought he saw a flash of shame on her face, but it was fleeting.

"Hmmph, seems to be the 'in' thing with porn flicks too, but I prefer hair myself."

It didn't stop House's hand from wandering further down, and he was pleasantly surprised to feel that she was quite wet. "Hmmm, someone is ready for some action."

Randi was planting little kisses along his jaw. She worked her way towards his ear as his fingers moved in and out of her wet core. Her excitement was almost overwhelming. She really wanted to fuck him, but he was the client and she had to give him whatever he wanted.

As her lips reached his ear, she whispered: "How can I make you happy tonight?"

"Lose the G-string and climb on board."

House shoved his jeans down to his knees and sat on the straight-backed chair. "And don't stare at my leg."

"Doc, I'm only interested in that middle leg. Gimme your hands."

House let her guide his hands to her G-string. She indicted that he should pull on the ribbons on each side. He did and smirked when the small garment came completely untied and fell off of her. Wearing just her high heels, Randi walked a few steps, grabbed a condom from the table and walked back to him. House's excitement grew even harder as he watched her move. Randi planted a slow sweet kiss on his lips and knelt down between his legs, pushing his jeans and boxers further down until they puddled around his ankles. She planted an equally slow kiss on the head of his dick and swirled her tongue around the opening, licking up his pre-cum. She licked him from end to end, taking her time as if she enjoyed the taste of him. Just when he thought he couldn't take any more, she rolled the condom onto his shaft and straddled his lap. She teased his cock against her entrance for a moment, and then slowly slid him inside of her.

House hissed as she engulfed him. She was hot and tighter than he thought she would be. Of course, he was better endowed than a lot of men; perhaps she had never had a cock as big as his.

He watched as she rode him. Her eyes were closed and her mouth formed a small open smile. He noticed that her nipples were fully erect and her respirations were becoming shallower. He put his hand on her neck and felt the speed of her pulse. She was either a damn good actress or she was enjoying this too.

His mouth found one of her nipples. He laved it and then sucked it hard until she gasped. He grinned at her response. He gave the other nipple the same treatment while his hands gripped her ass tightly.

Her movements grew faster; he was getting so close and he wondered if he could carry her over the edge with him.

"Open your eyes, babe."

Randi did as he asked. She could see the lust in his eyes and it made her desire even stronger. She squeezed her walls tighter around his shaft and he moaned, momentarily closing his eyes. He snapped them open again immediately. He leaned his head back a little, the better to see in her eyes.

"Don't close your eyes. I want to see them when I make you come."

Randi was momentarily confused. _When he makes me come? What is he talking about? I'm the one who's supposed to make him come._

Her confusion cleared when his thumb touched her clit. It was like a small electrical jolt at first, but his touch became stronger as she rode him. _Oh, my god, he is going to make me come._

She rode him harder and faster. Some clients liked it if you had an orgasm during sex, but they always wanted to come first. She didn't dare come before he did. Randi tried to hold out but his cock filled her so well and his thumb felt so good that she could feel that she was about to explode.

He seemed to know it too. He whispered: "Look at me."

Randi cupped his face with one hand, the other hand on his shoulder for balance. She had never seen a sexier pair of eyes in her life. He smelled good; he felt fantastic. It felt like her senses were alive for the first time in a very long while. He bucked up hard into her, his thumb rubbing on her clit and she cried out as she fell over the abyss. He thrust up into her a few more times and his orgasm hit. The force of their mutual orgasm was quite strong, yet they managed to keep their eyes locked on each other. They continued to buck against each other as they rode out their orgasm. Finally House stilled her hips and held her tightly against his body while their breathing returned to normal. Randi pressed her cheek against his, one hand on the back of his neck and the other playing with his hair.

_Oh my god, I just had the best sex of my life and with a crippled client of all people._

House rubbed the scruff of his beard against her cheek, then slapped her ass and said: "Off the leg, babe."

They had been enjoying each other so much that they both completely forgot about his leg. House knew right away that he wanted to see her again. Any woman good enough to make him forget about his leg was worth the money to become a regular in his life. He could already tell that she was better than Paula and Paula had been pretty damn good.

Randi quickly shifted her weight, easing the pressure on his right thigh. She grabbed the bottom of the condom and held on as she eased her body off of his. Once standing, Randi rolled the condom off of House and dropped it in the trash. She knelt between his legs again and licked him clean.

It was so erotic watching her mouth work on his cock. He had just had a mind-blowing orgasm, one of the best in his life, and he could already feel excitement stirring again. Not too bad for a 48-year-old cripple. He wanted her again tonight.

He ran his finger along her jaw to stop her movements. "Kiss me."

Randi gave his cock one last kiss and then leaned up to kiss him on the mouth. His kiss was needy and his tongue demanded entrance to her mouth, which she immediately granted. He kissed her long and hard and then moved his lips to her ear. His tongue licked the shell and his teeth nibbled the lobe gently. During his ministrations, he whispered: "I want to see you later. You get off at 2?"

"Call me at 2:30. I should be out of here and in my car by that time. If I can't talk, I'll call you right back. The number is 555-3742. That's 555-ERIC, as in Eric Clapton."

House snorted: "Clapton, huh? You like him?"

"Oh, yeah, he's the best."

"_Layla_, fast or slow?"

"Depends on my mood, but mostly slow."

"Yeah, me too."

House looked at her for a long minute, and then said: "I better pay you and get out of here or they'll start to wonder what's going on in here."

Randi nodded and stood up. She walked over to the small wardrobe, grabbed a dressing gown and slipped it on, while House pulled up his jeans and put himself back together.

As he pulled out his wallet, Randi picked up his cane and hung it through the belt of her dressing gown. As he pulled 3 one hundred dollar bills out of his billfold, he smirked as he noticed what she had done. He grabbed the end of the cane and pulled her to him. Pressing the folded bills into her hand, he muttered: "You're fun. Does breakfast come with an all-nighter?"

Randi shrugged: "Sure. I can make pancakes, French toast, whatever."

"I'll see what I have in the 'fridge."

House knew he had absolutely nothing in his refrigerator. However there was an all-night grocery store that he could hit on the way home. It would be worth it navigating the store on his aching leg in return for a home-cooked breakfast in the morning.

House limped to the door: "I'm going to buy my second over-priced scotch and watch the rest of the show."

"Hope you like my next costume."

He smiled: "Oh, I'm sure I will."

"Nice meeting you, Doc."

House gave a wave and headed down the hall. He passed the goon at the door who gave him a hard stare. House ignored him and headed back to his seat. He ordered another expensive scotch and settled in for the next show.

Randi went into the tiny bathroom and cleaned herself up a bit. Then she pulled open the wardrobe and took out her naughty nurse outfit. The top was short-sleeved with a zippered front; the white skirt barely made it past her ass. It unzipped completely on the side and was very easy to rip off. She put on a white G-string, some white thigh-highs and her white 4-inch heels. She brushed out her hair, and for a final touch, placed the little nurse's cap on top of her head. She touched up her make-up and was ready for the second show.

As Randi came out of the back room, the goon said to her: "Youse was back there an awfully long time for one ride. What gives?"

"Didn't you see the cane? He's a cripple. He needed a little extra time."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Randi's cell phone rang at 2:38AM. She flipped open her phone as she unlocked the car door. She didn't recognize the number and she hoped it was the Doc.

"This is Randi."

"Are you?"

She smiled; it was him. "Am I what?"

"Are you randy tonight?"

Randi giggled: "Why, yes I am. Would you like some company?"

"221B Baker Street. Need directions?"

He told her a new shortcut to get to his Princeton neighborhood and she drove out of the parking lot. Randi kept a bag in the car with a change of clothes, some toys, condoms and a toothbrush. Since the Doc was paying for an all-nighter, he would probably let her use his shower in the morning. If he really was a doctor, he should have a decent apartment with a more-than-adequate supply of hot water. Randi planned on taking advantage of that if she could. With the $150 that she got earlier, and the $200 that she expected from him, it was a nice little bonus for tonight. Normally, she got $500 for an all-nighter, but hell, the night was almost over. He was probably good for only one more time tonight, anyway. She wondered if he would want morning sex too. Should she ask for more money if he did? Naw, she decided. Better to get him hooked and wanting more. Three hundred and fifty bucks, a long hot shower and breakfast, even if she did have to cook it, was worth two more screws. Especially if he gave her another orgasm like he did earlier. Wow, that had been something else. She had never felt anything that intense in her life.

She wondered how old he was and what had happened to his leg. That was one big ugly scar. He seemed really sensitive about it and she couldn't blame him. If she had a scar like that, she would be hiding it from the world too. Well, she knew better than to ask him about it. She would just ignore it and concentrate on that big uncircumcised cock of his. Randi knew how to make a man happy and the Doc was going to be one happy man tonight.

House watched the second show while nursing his scotch. Randi looked good enough to eat in that hot little nurse's outfit. By the time she had stripped down to her G-string, stockings and heels, he had a raging hard-on again. He wondered if she would bring any costumes with her tonight. When the show finished, he slugged back the rest of his scotch and took off. Strangely enough, he didn't want to watch her giving lap dances to other guys and decide to head to that all-night market and get some groceries. She was _so_ going to make him pancakes in the morning.

It was a bit of a struggle balancing the groceries on his bike and yet another challenge carrying them inside, but he managed. After setting the sacks on the kitchen counter, he quickly swallowed two Vicodins to take the edge off of the pain. He sat for a while, rubbing his thigh and willing the pain to ease off. After 30 minutes, it had backed off to a more tolerable level, so he was able to get up and put the groceries away. Then he hobbled down the hall to the bedroom and surveyed the scene. It was a mess, as usual. He quickly stripped the bed and piled the dirty sheets in the bathroom hamper. There was a clean set of sheets in the closet and he remade the bed with them. He tossed all the journals into just one pile, threw his extra bottles of Vicodin into a drawer and took the dirty glasses out to the kitchen. He quickly washed up all the dirty dishes and stacked them in the drainer. House wanted her to make him breakfast in the morning and didn't want any impediments to his plan. After finishing all of this work, he sat on the couch and turned on the TV. He took off his shoes and socks, propped his feet on the coffee tablet and channel-surfed until he settled on Leno. The guests weren't that exciting, so he set his cell phone alarm clock and took a short nap. He woke up at 2:15, feeling somewhat refreshed. His leg didn't feel too bad and he felt like he would be up for some more bedroom fun. He limped down the hall to the bathroom to pee and brush his teeth. He ran a comb through his hair and limped into the bedroom for a clean t-shirt. He wondered why he was doing all this, for a woman he was paying to screw. He didn't want to admit it, even to himself but he liked to pretend that he wasn't paying her; that she was there because she wanted to be with him.

It had been a long time since there had been someone special in his life. He had been with Stacy for five years and now she had been gone for almost seven. She was the reason that his leg was maimed and scarred. For six months after that unwanted surgery, he had unleashed his anger on her until she couldn't take it any more and left him. After she had fled, he had walled off his heart and refused to try again. It was easier to be alone and pay for companionship when he wanted it. Physically, he wasn't the man he used to be and he resented it.

He rarely let his hookers spend the night, but this one seemed different. There was a certain spark about her. He had given her an orgasm, and it took her by complete surprise. He really liked that he had done that to her, it had been quite enjoyable to see the look on her face as it happened. She might be fun for a while, and since Paula was gone, he needed a replacement. If she spent the night and made him breakfast in the morning, it would feed his fantasy even more that he wasn't paying her to screw him. If he gave her orgasms and they had real fun in bed, that would go a long way also.

He glanced at his watch. It was 2:38 now. Good. He didn't want to seem desperate by calling at exactly 2:30, so this was good enough. He made the call, gave her directions and then sat down on the couch with a scotch to wait for her.

When he heard the knock, he quickly slugged back the rest of his scotch before he hobbled to the door.

There she was on his doorstep. Randi was wearing tight faded blue jeans, a white cropped top that exposed a few inches of her flat abdomen, and a pair of black open-toed wedge-heeled sandals. She had scrubbed off most of the heavy makeup that she had been wearing in the club, leaving on only some mascara and a touch of eyeliner around her big blue eyes. Her curly raven hair fell just past her shoulder blades in loose waves. As delicious as she had looked in the club in those skimpy costumes, she seemed so much more desirable now with this fresh-faced casual look.

She smiled and said simply: "Hey."

He gave her a very obvious once-over look, tilted his head and mimicked her: "Hey."

She gave him her own head-tilt: "Did you want some company tonight?"

"A sleep-over might be fun. Wanna paint my toenails?"

He stepped aside so she could enter.

Randi crossed over the threshold into his living room. "Whatever makes you happy, Doc. Wanna braid my hair?"

"Naw, I like it hanging loose."

Tilting his chin towards the bag hanging over her shoulder, he asked: "What's in the bag?"

"Oh, you know, sleep-over stuff. Jammies, toothbrush, nail polish, condoms. Stuff like that."

He smirked: "You won't be needing the jammies, babe. At my sleep-overs, everyone sleeps in the buff."

She gave him a sultry smile: "Oh, I like that. More comfy than jammies."

He smiled back and took a tentative step towards her. Randi set the bag on the floor and walked right up to him. His hands went to her hips and then slid up onto her bare midriff. She felt his thumb gently caress her skin and she smiled at him. He leaned down and rested his forehead on hers, his eyes closed, his thumb still caressing her ribs.

House was feeling unsure of what to do next. Part of him wanted to just take her, dominate her, pick her up and carry her to the bedroom and have his way with her. After all, he was paying for her services; he could do what he wanted, right? But the other side of him badly wanted to feed his fantasy; that he wasn't paying her, she was here in his arms because she wanted to be here. He would lead her by the hand to the bedroom. They would make love to each other and fall asleep in each other's arms.

The fantasy won out. He bent and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "Would you like a drink? I have some decent single-malt scotch."

"That would be nice. Thank you."

He touched her cheek. "Have a seat. I'll be right back."

Randi sat down and glanced around the room, trying not to be too obvious about it. If you looked around too much, the guys got paranoid that you were thinking about ripping them off while they slept. She noticed the two guitars hanging on the wall and the piano. She wondered if he was really a musician instead of a doctor. But then she saw the stack of _JAMA_ periodicals on the coffee table and she knew he had to be a doctor. Who would have _JAMA_ around except a doctor?

House returned with an extra glass and he poured them both a shot from the bottle of Laphroaig still sitting on the coffee table. He handed the glass to Randi and watched as she took a sip.

"Oh, this is nice." She leaned back against the couch.

He sat back next to her. "It's Laphroaig, favorite scotch whiskey of bonnie Prince Charles, or so they say."

"Well, I can see why. He has good taste."

They sipped silently for a few minutes. House draped his arm over the back of the couch, and then let it fall onto her shoulders. It was the type of move that a schoolboy would make with a girl on their first date at the movies. The Doc now acted almost shy to Randi, quite unlike the confident man he had seemed at the club. She snuggled deeper into his embrace and smiled up at him. She could see the smile briefly light up his eyes as he bent down to kiss her. Randi opened her mouth and let him slip his tongue in. She reveled in the sensations, the feel of his tongue, his taste. She could feel the heat building in her groin already.

She wondered what he was really into. Some guys would tell you straight out what they expect, others slink around the subject. At the club, that had been simple slam-bam-thank-you-ma'am sex, but it was different when you came to a client's home; they often had a fantasy of some type that they wanted you to fulfill. Randi just hoped it didn't involve anything too kinky. Right now, the Doc seemed happy just to be necking on the couch. Maybe he wanted the illusion of first-time lovers, shy, tentative, but yet passionate. Randi could dig that with him. She decided to play along with that scenario and see if that's what he wanted.

The next time that they came up for air, she took a quick swig of the scotch and then set the glass down. With both hands free, she started caressing his face and neck as they continued to kiss. The next time that they broke apart, he imitated her. He slugged back the rest of the scotch and set his glass down. One hand cupped her cheek while the other hand slipped up under her blouse. He caressed her soft skin and then moved up to her breast. He cupped it and then tweaked the nipple through the bra. He felt her smile against his mouth.

He asked huskily: "Like that?"

"Oh, yes. I like it when you touch me."

Her words and the tone of her voice set his libido into overdrive. Still, he didn't want to rush things so he restrained from just tearing her clothes off.

"I want to see what I'm touching. How about we slip this shirt off?"

Randi held her arms up in the air: "Would you help me with it, please?"

He smirked but complied. He pulled it over her head and tossed it aside. Underneath she was wearing a white lace demi-cup bra. He could see the outline of her nipples through the fabric and he rubbed one with his thumb. He was pleased to see it perk right up. She had such luscious breasts and he was looking forward to tasting them again.

He felt her hand on his chest and he looked down to see her unbuttoning his shirt.

He smirked: "In a hurry?"

She felt a flash of fear; she didn't want to displease him. She just wanted to see his naked chest as she hadn't seen him without his shirt yet.

"Not at all. I just thought you might like to get a little more comfortable."

"Ah, well then." He waved his hand towards the buttons and Randi got busy. When he was completely undone, she knelt on the couch and reached around to pull his shirt off. Her breasts were just inches from his face as she did this so he took full advantage of that. He cupped her with both hands and buried his face in the valley between her breasts. He liked the way she smelled; it was vanilla and cinnamon and reminded him of fresh baked cookies. Not the sexiest smell in the world, but on her it was great. He briskly rubbed his scruff back and forth on her sensitive skin and she giggled.

"Like that?"

She replied gleefully: "Yes."

He knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he couldn't help it. He was having fun with her.

"You know, I'm not completely comfortable yet."

She put on a serious pout. "Well maybe I can help with that."

Randi grasped the bottom of his t-shirt and glanced up at him. After receiving a nod, she pulled the shirt up and over his head. Her hands went right to his chest and started playing with the curly hairs growing there. Her mouth went to his neck and she kissed her way down to his clavicle and on to his nipples. She flicked her tongue over them and nipped lightly. Then she laved them soothingly.

House let his head drop against the back of the couch and he closed his eyes. Randi was hot, no doubt about it. He was really enjoying the attention she was giving him. She was nicely playing into his fantasy. She was taking her time and not rushing things with him and he appreciated that also. He opened his eyes and watched her as she nuzzled against his chest. His hand gently stroked her hair and she looked up at him.

"C'mere."

She moved up until her lips were right next to his and they were breathing each other's air. They kissed slowly, gently, tasting the scotch on each other's tongue.

House's hands moved down to the button of her jean and tugged it open. He pulled the zipper down and slipped his hand in. Her belly was warm and soft, and he stroked lower until he found the lace of her panties. He slipped his hand inside and was momentarily surprised to feel smooth skin. Then he remembered that she had to wax for her job. That was the one thing that kept her from being perfect in his eyes. He liked playing with pubic hair. It was OK if it was trimmed. Paula sometimes trimmed hers in cute ways. Once she trimmed it into a heart for Valentine's Day. That was a little cheesy, but still cute.

He moved his hand as low as he could considering the confines of her jeans. He managed to slip a finger between her folds and was pleased to find her rather wet. He rewarded her already swollen nub with a few gentle strokes until she moaned. He removed his hand and stuck his wet finger in her mouth. Their eyes locked on each other, she sucked it clean for him.

"Let's get you a little more comfortable. Lose the jeans."

Randi stood up and slowly peeled her jeans off, revealing a white lacy G-string. The all white lingerie looked great on her. She had that sexy innocent look down pat.

House was rock hard and he wondered how he was going to be able to walk to the bedroom with such a huge erection. He didn't want to take her on the couch; he wanted the comforts of his big bed.

Needing a momentary distraction, he asked Randi to pour him another shot. She did and after handing the glass to him, picked up her own glass and finished off her earlier shot. He focused on sipping his drink and did some multiplication tables in his head. Ah, that was good. His erection toned down just enough that he thought he could get up and walk to the bedroom. His leg felt stiff and he was concerned that he would have trouble getting up off the couch. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of Randi. She had already seen his scar, but he didn't want to move like a cripple in front of her.

He touched her cheek. "Bedroom's at the end of the hall. I'm going to close my eyes and wish that I'll find a gorgeous brunette in my bed in two minutes."

Randi let out a small giggle. House closed his eyes. He could feel the couch shift as she got up. He counted to 100 silently and then opened his eyes. Randi and her bag had disappeared. He set his glass down on the coffee table and slid to the edge of his seat. It took him 3 tries to get upright and he was glad that she wasn't in the room to see that. He stood there for a moment, rubbing his thigh and assessing his pain level. It wasn't too bad; it was just stiff from sitting for so long. He had just popped two Vicodins when he got home and it was really too early for more. He patted his pants pocket and, after assuring that his vial was there, decided to wait until after the sex to take more. He took a couple of tentative steps, decided that the stiffness would wear off and he slowly started down the hallway.

He stopped in the doorway. There was a goddess in his bed. Randi was lying on her stomach facing the door. Her upper body was propped up on her elbows giving him a great view of her cleavage. The white G-string accentuated her lovely ass and her long athletic legs stretched all the way across the bed.

Shyly she asked: "Did you get your wish?"

His erection sprang back to full attention. He licked his lips and said: "Oh, yeah."

He hung his cane on the doorknob and limped over to the bed. Randi knelt on the bed as he approached and laid her hands gently on his shoulders. House wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. He just held her for a few minutes, basking in the feel of her warm body against his chest. The lace from her bra was scratching him a little; so he reached up to the clasp and popped it open. He slipped the straps off of her shoulders, one at a time, until the bra fell into his waiting hand. He tossed it aside and stared at her breasts. They were so perfect: round, white orbs with perky pink nipples. He cupped one gently and took the nipple into his mouth. She hissed at the contact, arching her back allowing him better access. One of her hands crept into his hair, tangling her fingers around his short thin hair. Her other hand was grasping his shoulder for support. He suckled gently at first, then harder as his desire grew. When she cried out, he laved the nipple with his tongue to soothe it.

He was rock hard again and his jeans were feeling way too tight. As he pressed against her and kissed his way up her neck, he murmured: "I'm feeling a little uncomfortable."

Immediately he felt her hands on his belt: "Can I help with that?"

"Yes, I believe you can."

Randi unbuckled his belt and opened his jeans to release his straining organ. She slipped her hand inside his boxers and House let out a load moan as she made contact.

"Let me make you more comfortable."

Randi slipped off of the bed and knelt in front of House. She tugged his jeans and boxers down and his cock sprang to attention.

"He looks much happier now."

Randi pulled his clothes down to his ankles and then gently steered him onto the bed. As his ass hit the sheets, she untangled his clothes from around his ankles and tossed them aside. She looked up at him with a sultry smile on her face and then she took his cock into her mouth. It was an erotic sight watching her suck him, but he knew he was good for only one more time tonight and he didn't want to end it in her mouth. He wanted it to last longer.

He tugged at her arm: "Get up here."

Randi suckled just the head for a moment, swirling her tongue around the opening. With one final kiss on the tip, she clambered onto the bed next to him. They stretched out, heads on adjoining pillows, lying on their sides, facing each other. House took his time, admiring her body and softly caressing her. He eased her onto her back and kneed her legs apart. He moved in between her thighs, supporting his upper body weight on his elbows. House brushed his lips against hers and then pulled back to look into her eyes. Desire was there, and that drove him on. He kissed her again, gently at first and then more passionately. Randi returned the kiss with equal fervor, her hands cupping his face.

After a few minutes of passionate kissing, House started tasting his way down her body. He laved both nipples and buried his head in the valley between her breasts. He kissed his way down her belly and stuck his tongue into her belly button, causing her to giggle. He smiled at the sound of her laughter and nuzzled his scruff against her soft skin.

House continued his southward quest and when his tongue first lapped across her core, Randi gasped in surprise. Clients never did that. She gave _them_ oral sex; it was never the other way around. She looked down at House; he was lapping at her like a cat with a bowl of cream. _Well, what the hell? If it makes him happy, I'll lay back and enjoy it!_

It didn't take long for her eyes to close and for Randi to totally lose herself in the wonderful sensations emanating from between her legs. There had been only a very few times that Randi had experienced a man's mouth on her most private spot and it had never felt this good before. House licked her folds and poked his tongue inside of her. He licked and then gently suckled her clit, threatening to send her over the edge right then. She let out a loud moan and pushed up against his face. She felt him chuckle against her skin.

"Like that, babe?"

"Oh my god, yes, that feels so good."

He hummed against her clit, setting off new but pleasing sensations.

Huskily he said: "Tell me what you want."

Randi knew what she wanted; she didn't want him to stop what he was currently doing until she came hard. But she needed to say what she thought _he_ wanted to hear to keep the fantasy going for him.

"I want to feel you inside me. I want you to fuck me."

He smiled. _Jackpot!_ She said what he wanted to hear.

He started moving up her body, kissing as he climbed. "Say it again."

"I want to feel your big hard cock inside of me. I want you to fuck me."

"You want to be fucked, my little randy girl? You need to be fucked good and hard, don't you?"

"Yes, Doc, I need you. I need you to fuck me hard. I need your cock inside of me."

House was breathing hard now; he was more than ready to dive into her.

He grunted: "Condom?"

Randi had left three of them conveniently on the nightstand. She grabbed one and ripped it open. Reaching down, she rolled it onto his cock. When he was dressed, he parted her folds with his fingers and then teased the entrance with the head of his dick. She was wet and ready for him. He entered her with slow short thrusts.

Randi forgot who she was and what she was getting paid to do. All she could think about was that big cock that was entering her and how good it felt. He was moving so maddeningly slow and she was so turned on that she kept thrusting her hips up to him.

House was quite pleased at her response. This didn't feel like a call girl/client business interaction; she wanted him. She wasn't faking. She physically needed him and he was going to give her what she needed. He hooked his right arm under her left knee and lifted her leg up. This enabled him to thrust even deeper inside of her.

Randi's breathing was ragged; her hands gripped his shoulders as he pumped into her. He thought she was close and he wanted her to finish with him. He lifted her leg higher, placing it on top of his shoulder. That freed his hand to squeeze in between their bodies and rub her clit. She gasped and her eyes grew wide as his thumb found her swollen nub. House smiled, thoroughly enjoying her reactions. He pumped and rubbed harder and Randi gripped him tighter, managing in between gasps to plant kisses on his face. She felt her orgasm start, the tingling in her clit that quickly spread up into her uterus. The pressure was building until she was ready to explode. She squeezed her walls tighter to bring the Doc along with her.

"Ah, ah, Randi, oh god, you're so tight. Oh, fuck, fuck. Fuuuuuck."

Through the pleasure of her orgasm, she could feel his explosion. She pressed her cheek against his and held him as tightly as she could. He pumped three or four more times and then collapsed on top of her. He managed to lower her leg back to the bed and then rolled them to their sides. They held each other as their breathing returned to normal.

Randi felt House's cock softening inside of her. She grasped the base of the cock and the condom and slowly eased him out of her. She removed the condom and wrapped it in some tissue that she had placed on the nightstand.

House just laid there, eyes closed as he felt her take care of those matters. Then suddenly he felt her mouth on his softening cock. His eyes flew open and he watched her licking him.

"Hungry? You can't possibly still be horny after that."

She looked up at him with his dick in her mouth. Damn, she looked so incredibly sexy. "Just making you all nice and clean."

He watched her, smiling, as she cleaned him up. When she was satisfied with her job, she scooted back up the bed and laid her head on his shoulder.

He nuzzled and kissed her forehead as he ran his fingers through her hair. Randi sighed contentedly, her own fingers playing with his chest hair.

After a few minutes, House said: "I need my pills. Get them out of my pants, will ya, babe?"

Randi climbed off the bed and picked up his jeans, fishing the prescription vial out of his pocket. She handed it to him and watched as he popped the top off.

"Want some water or something?"

House shook his head and then popped two tablets into his mouth and swallowed. He patted the bed next to him, tilting his head, indicating that she should get back in bed. Randi laid his jeans on top of the chair. She untangled the top sheet and pulled it up over House. Then she walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed back in bed with him.

"Turn out the light. Let's go to sleep."

"OK."

Randi reached over to the lamp on the nightstand and switched it off. As soon as it was dark, she felt a strong arm grab her around the waist and pull her to his side. Her back pressed up to his front, his arm securely wrapped around her, House ground against her ass for a moment. He sighed with pleasure. This felt so good; it had been a long time since he had fallen asleep with a woman in his arms. His hand moved up and cupped her breast as his lips found the sweet spot on her neck.

Randi couldn't remember the last time that she had felt so good. The sex had been fantastic and she felt so warm and safe in his arms. His bed was so big and she could stretch out completely, unlike sleeping on her small futon. She felt his soft cock rub against her ass as his hand cupped her breast. She smiled; _he likes me. Maybe he'll be a regular. Oh god I hope I don't fuck this up somehow. He's nice to me and doesn't want anything too kinky. God, he ate me out. It's like he wanted me to come. He is too good to be true._

Randi gently rubbed the arm that was draped across her body and then she snuggled just a wee bit closer to him.

He grunted and tugged her closer still. "Sleep now."

Randi was exhausted and more than ready to comply with his request. "Night, Doc."

She felt his lips as he kissed her neck one more time. "Night, babe."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

A shaft of light that shone through the not-quite-closed drapes woke House. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was nearly noon. He felt a warmth on his left side and turned his head in that direction. There was a naked woman sleeping next to him with her head on his shoulder and her arm draped across his waist. Lifting the sheet, he took a good look at her naked form, his cock twitching at the sight of her.

Randi felt the cool air as the sheet lifted from her body. She wanted to burrow deeper into his warmth and sleep some more, but that wasn't what he was paying her for. She stretched and slowly opened her eyes. His big blue eyes were looking right at her.

She smiled at him: "Good morning."

"Well, it's morning. What's good about it?"

"Hmmm, what would make it good for you? Want some breakfast?"

"How about a blowjob and then breakfast?"

"Oh, goodie, I get to eat first."

House chuckled at her response and watched excitedly as she kissed her way down his body. By the time she took his cock into her mouth, he was already hard. It was incredibly erotic watching her blow him. Her face was pink with excitement and she would glance up at him with this incredibly sexy look in her eyes. She took her time with him; she licked and sucked as if he was the best tasting thing around. Her hands gently caressed his balls while her tongue ran up and down his length. His excitement kept building and he began thrusting into her mouth. She was able to take his whole length without gagging. His pleasure mounted and grabbing the back of her head, he thrust harder into her mouth, sure he was ramming the back of her throat but he was too far gone to stop. He came hard and she swallowed all that he had to give.

Floating on a cloud of endorphins after his orgasm, House could barely move. He was aware that Randi was gently licking his dick and he managed to move enough to stroke her hair a little bit. With a last little kiss on the head, Randi moved up the bed to lie next to him. She caressed him and planted little kisses on his neck and chest.

He kissed the top of her head and murmured: "Babe, you sure know how to blow. You're a hot little thing."

With two fingers under her chin, he tilted her face up. Her smile was so sweet, that he couldn't help smiling back.

With his thumb stroking her cheek, he asked: "I wasn't too rough, was I?"

Surprised by his concern, it was all she could do to just shake her head. Finally, she found her voice: "No, not at all."

He smiled lazily and pulled her closer. They lay in each other's arms for a little while, until House's stomach growled noisily.

"I take it you're ready for some breakfast now."

"Pancakes would be nice."

"I'll go check out your kitchen." It was half a question and half a statement.

House nodded to indicate that it was OK for her to explore the kitchen on her own. Randi slipped out of bed and rummaged through her bag for a moment. She didn't want to cook naked, unless he specifically requested that. She had packed a little cotton nightdress, nothing overtly sexy, but it had spaghetti straps and clung nicely to her body. She knew some girls liked to grab the client's shirts to wear, but Randi didn't do that. That implied a certain level of intimacy that really didn't exist between the girl and the client and plus some clients didn't like it if you put on their clothes without being asked to do so. House hadn't asked and Randi was making no assumptions.

"Shall I make some coffee first? I could bring it to you in bed."

"Coffee first, but I'll get up in a minute."

Randi nodded and then slipped into the bathroom. She peed, washed her hands and fluffed up her hair a little bit. She made her way into the kitchen, located the ground coffee and started the coffeemaker. As the coffee brewed, she looked around for everything she would need. There was an unopened box of pancake mix, eggs, milk, and bacon. She located all of the cooking utensils that she would need and started mixing the batter.

Wearing only his jeans, House wandered out just as the coffee finished brewing. Randi poured him a cup and added sugar at his request. She made a mental note of how he liked two spoons of sugar, no milk, in his coffee. Guys always like it when you remember how they take their coffee.

She made pancakes and bacon and they ate on the coffee table in the living room. She was a little surprised that he didn't have a kitchen table to sit at, but figured that as a bachelor he probably ate out a lot. He put on the Cartoon Network to watch while they ate. She chuckled inwardly; cartoons with breakfast, it was like being a little kid again.

When they finished eating, she cleaned up all the dishes and stacked them in the drainer while he continued to watch cartoons.

Dishes done, she wandered back into the living room and asked: "Hey, is it OK if I take a shower before I go?" Randi was looking forward to some unlimited hot water for a change.

He replied: "You know, showering with a friend saves water."

She nodded: "That's true. Conservation of our natural resources is very important."

He quirked an eyebrow at her; she seemed a lot smarter than your typical call girl. He wondered what was her story, but he wasn't in the mood to find out now.

House ruffled his short hair: "I could use a shampoo."

"I can take care of that for you. C'mon."

Randi held out her hand. House took it and she pulled him up off of the sofa. Still holding his hand, they started down the hall towards the bathroom.

House said: "I like my shower really hot, hope that's OK."

Randi smiled and gave his hand a little squeeze: "No problem, Doc."

House unfastened his jeans, pushed them part way down and then sat on the closed toilet to finish pulling them off. He directed Randi to the linen closet for towels and mentioned the desired temperature of the water. Randi did as he asked, but noticed that he kept his hand draped over his scar. She wondered why he was so self-conscious about it; after all she has already seen it. It was ugly, but what was the big deal?

"Ready, Doc? I think the water is hot enough." Randi pulled the nightdress over her head and dropped it on the floor.

House, once again, admired her young perfect body. Feeling the rough scar under his hand reminded him that there was no way someone as young and gorgeous as her would be with an ugly crippled old fart like him unless he was paying her. He hated the fact that now she was going to see just how crippled he was. He couldn't just step right into the tub; his right leg wouldn't hold his weight like that. He needed to sit on the edge of the tub, pick up his bad leg and swing it over.

Randi noticed the grab bars in the shower and wondered if he had difficulties getting in and out of the shower. She figured he was not the type to want assistance, so she decided to proceed as if he didn't need any help. She stepped under the spray and started wetting her hair. The water was nice and hot. She decided to keep her back turned to him to give him a bit of privacy with getting into the tub.

House felt a twitch in his lower region as he watched her get under the spray. Damn, she was sexy. He wished he were younger and in better shape. He figured he would make his move into the tub while her back was turned.

He scooted over to the edge of the tub, sat and lifted his bad leg into the tub. He easily swung his good leg over and then using the grab bar, pulling himself upright. He carefully moved until he was right next to Randi, under the spray, and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

Randi leaned back against him. She didn't want him to lose his balance, so she didn't put too much of her body weight on him. House put some soap into his hands and started washing her breasts, mumbling something about getting them extra clean. He washed her upper body and between her legs, spending a good bit of time there. Between those lovely sensations and the endless hot water, Randi was in heaven.

She turned around in his arms to return the favor. She soaped him up and washed his arms and chest. She had him turn around and face the wall while she washed his back and his butt. It had been a long time since House had shared a shower with anyone and he was thoroughly enjoying it.

Randi knelt in front of him and washed his legs. When she got to his scar, she washed very gently. House froze when she touched his scar. He wasn't used to anyone seeing it, much less touching it. But Randi was very gentle and treated it just like any other part of his body, so he gradually relaxed into her touch.

She saved his package for last. She lathered him up and tenderly washed him. He became partially erect from the lovely sensations and the fantastic view of a wet naked Randi on her knees in front of him. After she rinsed him off, she took his cock into her mouth. A loud moan escaped from his mouth. House grabbed the bar for some stability. He wasn't sure he would be able to continue standing if she made him come again. He really didn't think he would. After all, he'd had three orgasms in less than 24 hours and at his age that was really damn good.

But it had been a long time since a woman had treated him like this. Paula had been fun, but much more businesslike than Randi. Get in, get him off, get paid and get out. She was good in bed, and he had enjoyed her, but this was so much better. Randi acted like she could stay all day and was just having fun with him. She seemed like she _wanted _to be here with him. She really fed into his fantasy nicely.

He enjoyed the feel of her mouth and tongue caressing his cock. The view was excellent and when she glanced up at him with a sultry look in her eyes, he knew he was losing the battle. When her finger rubbed the sensitive spot behind his balls, it was all over and he came into her mouth. His back pressed against the shower wall, his arm gripping the bar, House barely managed to remain upright as he jerked into her mouth. His legs felt rubbery and he knew he needed to sit. He slowly slid down the wall, until his ass hit the tub.

"Jesus, woman, what you do to me."

He placed his hand on the back of her head and pulled her closer. Resting his forehead on her, he kissed her lips in between gasps of breath. She stroked his hair as his breathing returned to normal. When his breathing seemed to be back to normal, Randi said: "It's good you're sitting. I still need to wash your hair and it will be easier for me this way."

House chuckled out loud. After all that, and she still remembered to wash his hair. He remained sprawled and boneless in the tub as she shampooed his hair and carefully rinsed it.

"I'm just going to wash mine real quick, OK?"

House stroked her leg as he watched Randi shampoo her hair. While she was rinsing, his hand crept higher until he touched her most sensitive spot. She gasped with surprise as he slipped two fingers inside of her. She was wet, and it wasn't from the shower. He delighted in the fact that he had this effect on her. He rubbed her clit with his thumb while his fingers thrust up against her G-spot.

"Doc, oh my god, Doc,,"

Randi leaned up against the wall for support and spread her legs a little wider to give him better access. That movement didn't go unnoticed by House who was thrilled with her response. He continued those motions with his right hand while his left hand stroked her ass.

It didn't take long to push her over the edge. She cried out incoherently as she came, her upper body pressed against the wall for support. He felt a fresh flood of moisture on his fingers as she came.

She slid down the wall until she was sitting next to him. She rubbed her lips against his and murmured: "You're so sexy."

House smirked; she knew how to feed his ego. This hot young thing thinks this old cripple is sexy? He was definitely going to call her again. He rubbed his sticky fingers against her lips and she parted them, allowing him to slip his fingers in. She sucked them clean and then kissed him deeply. They kissed for several minutes until the water started to turn cold.

"Oh, crap, we're out of hot water. Turn it off, babe. I hate cold showers."

"Me too."

Randi reached up, turned off the taps and then scrambled out of the tub. Patting the side of the tub, she said: "Sit here and I'll dry your hair for you."

She turned her back to him as she went for the towels.

House wasn't sure if she knew how much trouble he would have getting out of the tub, but she had found a gracious way of saving his dignity. Randi fussed with the towels to give the Doc a moment to park his ass on the edge of the tub. By the time she turned around, House had positioned himself to his satisfaction. Randi stood in between his legs and toweled his hair dry. Then she dried his back, chest and arms. She knelt down to dry off his legs.

House motioned for a towel and he rubbed her hair with it. She finished drying herself and turned her back while he struggled to stand up. Once he had managed that, he draped his left arm over her shoulders and used her as support as they walked back into the bedroom. Randi pulled some clean clothes out of her bag and stuffed the rest of her belongings back into it. They both dressed and walked back out to the living room. Randi grabbed her shirt that had been left where House had tossed it, and stuffed it into the bag also.

Shyly she said: "I guess I should go. I have to work tonight and I'll need a nap before I go."

House nodded solemnly. He reached into his wallet and pulled out some bills. He folded them in half and then in half again, before pressing them into the front pocket of her jeans.

She smiled sweetly: "Thank you. You're a lot of fun. I hope to hear from you again. You got my number?"

He smirked "555-ERIC Clapton. I think I can remember that."

"Umm, I'm off on Sundays and Mondays right now. So if you call on those nights, I can come over earlier. If I'm at the club, I can come over after my shift like I did last night, OK?"

He nodded and steered her to the door. He didn't like this part; it messed with his fantasy and he wanted it over with. He opened the door and then cupped her face with both hands. His lips pressed urgently to hers, his tongue demanding entrance to her mouth. Her lips parted and they kissed long and deeply.

When they finally came up for air, Randi felt a little flushed. That kiss had been intense. Doc looked quite satisfied with himself. He gave her ass a squeeze and said: "See ya around, babe"

"Bye, Doc."

As Randi walked to her car, she realized that she never gotten his name. He just let her call him Doc. Well that was fine with her. He didn't know her real name either. Doc and Randi would do just fine for the type of relationship that she hoped they would have.

Before she buckled her seat belt, she pulled the bills out of her pocket. He was supposed to pay her $200 for last night, but there was $400 in there. Randi was shocked, but delighted. It must mean that he really liked her. She pumped her fist in victory. He would be calling again. If she could keep him happy for a while, she would be able to save up for her tuition in just a short time. She wondered what else he liked in bed. He certainly liked to make her come, a real special perk as far as Randi was concerned. As she turned on the ignition, she thought about her 'toys' and wondered what to bring next time. She wanted to learn all the things that he liked and keep him happy for as long as possible.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Spoilers from S-3: "Family" and "Human Error"**

Chapter 5

Randi went home and flopped on the futon. It was small and uncomfortable compared to his bed, but she convinced herself to go to sleep. She woke at 5PM and went for her run. Upon her return, she showered and got ready for work. There was a small dish of leftover Hamburger Helper and she gobbled that for her dinner.

She netted only $350, which wasn't that good for a Saturday night. She took two guys in the back for BJ's, and she could have taken a third but he just was so repulsive and stinky that she couldn't envision putting her mouth on him. She took a pass on him and one of the other girls took him in the back instead. She checked her phone when she got into her car but there were no messages. She got home around 3AM, had a small but delicious snort of that very expensive scotch that a client had given her, and went to sleep.

She woke around noon with a huge appetite. The refrigerator was almost bare, as it usually was on Sundays. There was one frozen bagel left in the freezer, so she toasted that and spread the remainder of the cream cheese on it. After she ate that, Randi ran to the corner for the Sunday paper. She sat at her small table and pulled out the coupon sections. She clipped out all the coupons that she could use and planned her list for the week. Grocery list prepared, she headed out to the store.

She managed to schlep all of the bags up the stairs in just one trip. Chicken leg quarters had been on sale for 99 cents a pound, so there was going to be Shake-N-Bake tonight. She put all the groceries away and sat down with a peanut butter sandwich to peruse the want ads. She kept trying to find another job, but it was hard to find one with the flexible hours that she would need when school started. She knew that she could get a job as a nurse tech and it would be great experience for her, but the pay was so crappy that there was no way she could survive on that. With a sigh, she tossed the paper aside. There was nothing as usual. She was stuck with this job until she got out of school.

She spent the rest of the afternoon, cleaning her studio apartment. The place was so tiny and she kept it immaculate, so there really wasn't much to do, but Randi went through the motions. It was another Sunday ritual for her.

Around 5PM, she went for her run. Upon her return, she showered, dressed and started preparing the chicken. While waiting for her dinner to cook, she flopped on the futon. She checked her phone one more time, but there were no messages. She tried to convince herself that he wouldn't call again so soon. Maybe in a week, he would call. There were angry shouts in the hallway and then a door slammed. She hated this place; she knew there were drug deals going down and gang members hanging out in this building, and she was often frightened. But it was the best place that she could get for the price and she reminded herself to be grateful for having an apartment at all.

Randi couldn't wait for school to start again so that she could stay busy with homework. But that was four weeks away and she needed a distraction right now. Maybe she would bake some cookies later; right now the chicken was occupying the oven. She didn't have a TV; there was only a small boom box to provide entertainment. Randi chose a CD, Eric Clapton's _'Unplugged'_, and put it on. Then she sat down to read. She had just picked up a new Agatha Christie novel at the second hand bookstore. She loved Agatha's work. Her favorite was _'Ten Little Indians'_. The plot was so complicated that it fascinated Randi to no end. She had read it several times, and never seemed to tire of it. Her recent purchase was a Hercule Poirot mystery, called _'Halloween Party'_. The really old novels at the second hand store were only 75 cents and Randi had a small collection of Agatha novels that she had purchased there. Randi checked the timer; she had 30 minutes more until the chicken was ready. She settled down on the futon and opened the book.

House spent the rest of Saturday afternoon on his sofa. He had TIVO'ed several episodes of General Hospital and spent the day catching up on his favorite soap. Wilson called around 6PM, said he was bringing Chinese and showed up 45 minutes later. They ate a banquet of Kung Pao Chicken, Hunan Beef and Shrimp Lo Mein while Wilson told House all about his date the previous night. Wilson's panty peeler routine had worked yet again, and he had spent the night with the luscious Connie from Peds. House smirked and enjoyed the tale, but didn't reveal anything about his own activities the previous evening. When asked, he just said he rode around on his motorcycle for a while. He didn't want to tell Wilson about Randi. In the past, the two friends had occasionally shared hookers but this time House didn't want to share. So he figured the less said, the better.

They spent the rest of the evening parked on the couch, drinking beer and watching a Steven Segal movie marathon. Around midnight, after lots of gunfire and other excessive violence, Wilson decided to call it a night and went home. House went to bed around 2AM. He thought he could still smell her scent on the pillow. As he hugged it to his chest, it reminded him again of home baked cookies and was rather comforting as he fell asleep.

He spent all day Sunday alone, calling for the local Thai take-out place at dinnertime for delivery. As the evening wore on, he thought about calling her. He was quite bored and needed a distraction, but he decided to wait. He didn't want to appear to be obsessive or needy and calling too quickly could give her the wrong impression. He watched an old tape of a monster truck rally, played the piano for a bit, and went to bed around 1AM.

There were many nights that she couldn't sleep; Sunday turned out to be another one in a long string of sleepless nights. She knew from her psychology courses that she most likely had PTSD, but that knowledge didn't help when the anxiety hit her in the middle of the night like a ton of bricks. Reason couldn't drive away the fear.

She knew why she couldn't sleep. A part of her was waiting for him to come into her bed and use her body for his pleasure. There was no point in trying to sleep until he had finished with what he wanted from her. Once he left, she often cried herself to sleep. She felt so disgusting and pathetic afterwards. He would tell her: _You're only good for one thing._ And now she was doing that very thing, for money. She really was the whore that he always told her she was.

Randi glanced at her little clock; it was 2AM. She lay there trying to decide whether to get up or not. Realizing that she probably wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, she got out of bed. She turned on the small lamp and opened the closet door. In the back of the closet was a very worn, dirty backpack. It was the same one that she stuffed all of her possessions into when she had finally left home. She pulled it out of the closet and shut the door. Even though she knew there was no one else in the small apartment, she furtively looked around as she walked over to the far corner of the room. She sat on the floor with her back against the wall; legs splayed out straight in front of her and unzipped the backpack.

She pulled out an old dirty stuffed animal. It had once been a pretty brown dog with floppy ears, but the years had not been kind to him. He had lost one ear and both eyes and his fur was filthy. Randi was afraid to wash him; afraid he would just fall apart, so she tolerated the dirt. He was special; he had been a gift from her daddy on her fourth birthday. Her daddy had left home when she was eight; he hadn't even said good-bye. She came home from school one day and he was just gone. Her mother refused to say anything about him, other than the statement that he was gone and never coming back. She had slapped Randi when she cried. Randi couldn't understand why he would leave her. Didn't he love her? Did she do something bad so he got mad and left? She couldn't remember doing anything bad and Daddy never got mad at her, not the way that her Mom did. Her Mom would yell and slap her if Randi made her mad, especially if she'd been drinking. Maybe that was why Daddy left; maybe it wasn't Randi at all, maybe it was Mom's drinking. Randi had puzzled over it for a long time, but she had never figured it out. It was after Daddy left that the bad things started happening. She prayed for a long time for him to come back and get her. When she finally figured out that he was never coming back, she realized that there was no such thing as God, Jesus, a white knight on horseback or any other type of 'savior'. She was all alone in the world.

She hugged the old dog to her chest. She whispered her fears to him and, as always, he listened patiently. Finally, she felt a little calmer and set him down on the floor, right up against her leg. Then she pulled out the other items in the backpack: a pack of colored pencils and a sketchpad. Again she looked around, assuring herself that she was alone. If _he_ were there, he would tell her that her drawings were stupid, a waste of paper. She whispered to herself: _"He's not here, he's not here."_ She took a few deep breaths until she felt a little calmer. Then she flipped open the sketch book and glanced at the pages. Her drawings were always of the same theme, but with different colors and backgrounds. It was always a house, with a fence around it. In the middle of the yard, there stood a dog. Sometimes the dog was brown, but most of the time, it was a black Lab. This was her desire; this is what she was striving for when she got out of nursing school. She would work hard and save her money. One day, she would have a little house just for her and she would get a dog. The house would have a yard with a fence around it so that the dog could run around the yard.

It was all she wanted. She felt it was an obtainable goal as long as she stayed focused. She would feel safe in her own house with her own dog. Her anxiety would go away; she felt sure of it.

Tonight she decided that the house would be yellow with white trim. She picked up her pencils and started drawing.

It took her a couple of hours to finish the drawing to her satisfaction. She packed the pencils back into their box and stared at the picture for a few more minutes.

"One day," she whispered to herself. She closed the sketchpad and placed it in the backpack. The pencils followed, and after one more hug, so did the dog.

It would be dawn soon, but that didn't matter. The windows had dark curtains on them. Randi could sleep at any time of the day or night with those dark curtains covering the windows. She placed the backpack in the far corner of the closet and climbed back under the covers. Within a few minutes, she was sound asleep.

When House got to work on Monday, the team had a new case and it turned out to be one of Wilson's patients. A young boy, planning on donating his bone marrow to his leukemia-stricken brother, developed a fever and enlarged spleen. His brother had already been irradiated, killing off his own bone marrow in preparation for the transplant. They needed to figure out what was causing the younger boy's infection quickly as the older brother only had about 5 days left to live without the transplant.

House proposed making the kid sicker, letting the infection spread so they could get a better idea of what they were dealing with. Foreman disagreed with him. He wanted to go and search the family's home for any environmental toxins instead. House became irritated with Foreman, who had been rather cautious ever since he made an error on a previous case and the patient had died. He seemed to have lost confidence in himself for making medical decisions about patients. Surprising his fellows with this decision, House allowed Foreman and Chase to go search the family's home, but in the meantime; he went into the kid's room to work on making him sicker.

At the end of the day, they still had no answer. The kid was sicker and yet the tests had revealed nothing. Foreman's lack of confidence was eroding his judgment and he went over House's head to Cuddy when House wanted to perform a somewhat unconventional procedure on the patient. House was pissed about that and he swore that if Foreman wasn't back to his old self by the end of the week, House was going to fire him. Leaving his fellows to run more tests searching for the specific bacterium that was infecting the kid, House went home.

It had been a crappy day. He really wanted to just unwind, but he couldn't turn off his brain. He ran the case over and over again in his mind as he heated up some leftover Chinese food. After he ate, he pondered what to do next. Maybe a hot bath would be relaxing. Naw, his brain would just keep churning while he was in the tub. He needed a better distraction than that.

It was Monday, her day off. He picked up his phone and stared at it for a moment. Then he scrolled through his contacts, found her number and pressed 'send'.

Randi has awakened once at 10AM, realized that it was her day off and she really had no reason to get out of bed, so she went right back to sleep. She finally rolled out of bed at 2PM, still at a loss of what to do with the rest of her day. Deciding that she would go stir crazy if she stayed in the apartment all day, she quickly showered and dressed. It seemed like it was 100 degrees outside. Randi was glad that it was her day off from running; it was just too hot to run today. She decided to head over to the mall. She could walk around in the air conditioning and just window shop, maybe even splurge on an ice cream cone.

She spent a couple of hours strolling around in the lovely air-conditioned space, staring at things in the store windows that she had no money to buy. She did splurge on some Kohr Brothers frozen custard, opting for her favorite orange-vanilla zebra stripe cone. Around 5PM, she went home and heated up some leftover chicken for dinner.

She had just settled in for a long, lonely night of reading when her cell phone rang. Checking the caller ID, Randi was happy to see it was the Doc calling her. Looked like she wouldn't be lonely tonight after all.

It took 2 more days to figure out what was wrong with the kid. Finally Foreman figured out that the kid had histoplasmosis, a serious fungal infection. He could be cured with a treatment course of amphotercin, but it seemed to be too late for his brother. The fungal infection was in the younger boy's marrow and giving it to his brother would be a death sentence.

But then, unbeknownst to everyone else, Foreman did something radical. He explained to the younger boy that if he took his marrow and gave it to his brother along with the same anti-fungal drug, that there was a chance of saving his brother's life. Of course, the child was all for it, even after Foreman explained that he had to extract the marrow in a rather painful manner without sedating the boy. Foreman managed to accomplish the task in spite of the boy's screams of pain.

The unconventional treatment was a success. Initially the parents were outraged at what Foreman had done to their younger son without their permission, but as both boys continued to recover, their initial rage turned to joy at having both sons alive and getting well again.

House didn't have to make good on his threat to fire Foreman by the end of the week. Once the case was over, Foreman submitted his 2-week notice, stating that he didn't want to turn into House. The fact that he had been able to coldly perform a painful procedure on a screaming child convinced him that he had better leave House's employ before he became a complete bastard like House.

Over the course of the next two weeks, House and his team had several new cases. Foreman interviewed for new jobs. The rest of the team plus Wilson and Cuddy worked on House to try to get him to convince Foreman to stay. House focused on his cases and tried to push the other problem out of his mind.

He called Randi every Sunday night for a sleepover. She would arrive around 7 or 8 PM and stay until he left for work the next morning. He thought his 500 bucks was well spent, considering he got around 14 hours of her time, 2 or 3 orgasms, a shared shower and a hot cooked breakfast for his money. She was sweet and affectionate and fed into his fantasy so well. He started leaving the money for her in an envelope on the coffee table so that he wouldn't have to hand it to her and wreck his illusion. Her visits were definitely the high point of his week.

Right before Foreman's 2-week notice was up, the Cuban refugees arrived. They had fled Cuba seeking help from House for the wife's mysterious illness. As usual, House and his fellows argued over the diagnosis. After Foreman accidentally broke her arm, House was convinced that she had cancer that had spread into her bones. Chase still believed that it was an infection and continued to argue with House, indicating that House was just agreeing with Foreman to placate him so that he would reconsider and stay at PPTH. While Foreman and Cameron took the patient off for a PET scan, House returned to his office, Chase following on his heels.

Chase started to argue the case some more, but House abruptly fired him.

When Chase asked why he was being fired, House replied: "Because you've been here the longest, you've learned all you can, or you haven't learned anything at all. Either way, it's time for a change."

The other fellows were shocked at Chase's dismissal but they continued to work on the patient. Her heart stopped and they couldn't restart it. They placed her on bypass while House desperately tried to figure out what was wrong. He finally told the husband that there was no hope and he needed to say good-bye and the machines would be turned off. Miraculously she woke up after the machines were turned off. The patient and her husband considered it a miracle, but House needed to know the reason why. He decided to perform another angiogram and discovered her heart problem, which was surgically correctible.

His happiness with solving the case doesn't last long. Foreman's farewells ended with an argument between the two doctors, so their parting was quite bitter. Later on that evening, Cameron entered his office with her letter of resignation. Suddenly, House had no team left.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It was Tuesday Sept 4th, the first day of the fall semester and Randi was glad that school was finally starting again. She would only be working at the club two nights a week now and although she had to live on less money, it was so worth it in other ways. She reminded herself to tell Doc that she wouldn't be able to stay so late on Monday mornings anymore. She had to be at the hospital by 7AM. Fortunately he lived close to PPTH so it would be a quick trip to work. She'd find another way to make it up to him. Maybe he would like it if she came over earlier on Sundays and made him dinner, instead of making him breakfast on Monday mornings.

She pondered all of this whilst standing on the edge of a large group of her fellow nursing students in the lobby of PPTH. This semester was the beginning of their clinical rotations. They would be spending two months in different areas of specialty. Their mornings would be spent working on their assigned floors under the guidance of an experienced RN. In the afternoons, they would gather in one of the large classrooms, hear lectures and take their exams. Randi knew there would be a lot of reading this semester and she was looking forward to it. Their last semester would be just clinical rotations and assigned papers, no classroom work at all.

Randi wasn't really friends with any of the other students. She had tried to be friendly in the beginning, but she was so afraid that someone would find out her occupation, that she backed off from any friendly overtures. Some of the class thought of her as shy, others thought she was stuck-up. She kept to herself, participated in class as minimally as required and generally tried to fade into the background. Her grades were good and her professors were liberal with praise for her work, but she didn't handle complements very well. She would just shyly thank them and quickly leave. There was a broken record in her head that constantly reminded her that she was just a whore and that she was fooling herself thinking that she was good enough to be a nurse. Randi fought the message constantly, but it was always in the background, kind of like elevator music. She lived in constant fear that someone would find out what she was, spill the beans and then her dream would be dead.

Randi saw them out of the corner of her eye. _Oh, crap,_ they were heading her way. Ashley and Amy were twin blond-haired green-eyed beauties. They had made it quite plain that they were only in nursing school to please Daddy who, of course, was picking up their entire tab. They planned on working long enough to snag rich doctor husbands and then never working a day in their lives again. For some reason, they had zeroed in on Randi and enjoyed picking on her. Randi tried to stay away from them as much as possible, but sometimes they were hard to avoid.

In a loud voice, Ashley cried: "Well, there you are! And how was your summer? Did you go to Europe like we did?"

Randi just shook her head and gave them a small smile: "Nope. I just stayed right here in New Jersey."

Amy moaned: "Ugh. How boring. How could you stand it? We spent three weeks in Paris! It was _so_ fabulous. We shopped until we dropped, didn't we Ashley?"

Her sister giggled: "Yes, we did. But what did _you_ do all summer?"

Randi tried to ease away from them: "Nothing as exciting as shopping in Paris."

Amy smirked: "Yeah, I'll bet. You were probably working at Burger Barn or some other ghastly place like that."

Fortunately for Randi, their instructor started speaking just then. She started herding them around the hospital and Randi fell to the back of the group, watching as the twins chatted away with Megan and Brittany, a couple of the girls from their little clique.

They got a tour of the hospital and then they were given an hour's break for lunch. Most of her classmates took off for the cafeteria, but Randi slipped outside and found an empty bench. She didn't like her classmates to see the meager peanut butter sandwich that she brought for her lunch, so she preferred to eat alone. After finishing her sandwich, she walked around the square for a bit until it was time to rejoin everyone in the lobby. Now they were going to get their assignments for the semester. Randi didn't really know what area of nursing that she wanted to work in, so she was excited to start sampling all of them. Again, she was standing on the fringe of the group, when on the balcony above them; a familiar movement caught her eye. Her eyes grew wide as she recognized that limping gait. _Oh my god, out of all the hospitals in Mercer County, he works here? _

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

It had been strange these last two weeks without his fellows. He had relished the quiet and yet missed sparring with them. His mail and his charting were piling up since Cameron was no longer there to do it for him. Cuddy had been hassling him about setting up interviews to hire new fellows, but he kept stalling. He didn't like change and he didn't want to break in new fellows. He told Cuddy he had no cases; therefore he didn't need a team. She would give him a case and he would say that he couldn't do it because he didn't have a team. She would tell him to hire a team and he would say _'what for, I have no case'_. It was a vicious circle and Cuddy was sick of it. House had spent the last two weeks just playing his electric guitar in his office and other employees were starting to complain. Finally she handed him a case and threatened him that if he didn't take it he would spend the next month changing bandages on accident victims.

He did take the case and he did manage to solve it on his own. However, Cuddy was furious when she found out that he had conned the janitor into participating in the DDX and posing as a doctor in front of the patient's family. She ordered him to start interviewing and hire a team.

During lunch with Wilson, House continued his rant about Cuddy.

Wilson interjected: "She's right. You need a team to bounce ideas with. You spend too much time alone as it is."

"What's that supposed to mean? I'd rather be alone than spend time with idiots."

"You have zero social life."

"Hey, I hang with you and I have my poker games."

"Yeah, that's great. What about women? Remember dating? Dinner with a chance for sex that you don't have to pay for?"

"If you _pay_ for dinner, you've _paid _for the sex! That way is just so complicated. You pay for dinner and hope you get lucky. Bah! Straight out paying for sex is way easier than doing the whole dinner routine in the hopes of getting lucky. You pay, you get some. The end. It's a sure thing. Dating is not."

"It's been, what, six years since Stacy left, don't you think it's time to get back on the horse?"

"Cripple here. I can't run and I can't ride anymore. I let the hookers ride me."

Wilson shook his head: "You're pathetic. I bet you couldn't find a girlfriend and last three months with her."

House smirked: "I could if I wanted to, but I don't want to. Too much hassle."

"You're too chicken shit to take the bet. Two hundred bucks says you can't do it."

"That's chump change. I wouldn't put out the effort for that. A nice dinner out is more than 200 bucks."

"OK, fine, I'll make it worth your while. One thousand bucks that you can't find a girlfriend and last three months with her."

House didn't want to make the bet but if he didn't, it was the same as admitting that he couldn't do it. And he would never admit that to Wilson. But if he took the bet, he would need to start dating. Ugh, he hated the thought of that almost as much as he hated the thought of losing. He didn't like the idea of trying to woo a woman and then getting naked with her for the first time wondering what her reaction to his scar would be. He couldn't stand being that vulnerable.

He pondered the implications of the bet for so long that Wilson became impatient with him and started making clucking noises.

"I am not chicken. Stop that ridiculous noise."

"Yes, you are. You have been out of the game for so long, you're afraid to dive back in."

"Am not, moron."

"Are too, limping twerp."

House slammed his hand on the table. "Fine! But let's make it really worth my while. Five thousand bucks says I can find a girl and keep her around for three months."

Wilson's eyes grew huge at the amount of cash that House was demanding. "Five thousand bucks? For a bet? That's huge for you. No way."

"Now who's the chicken shit? Not so confident anymore, are you?"

Wilson smirked: "Oh, I'm confident, all right. I'm confident that you can't do it. But for five thousand bucks, let's make it a bit more challenging. Five thousand bucks says you can't find a girl and keep her around for _six_ months."

_Fuck! Six months!_ What had he gotten himself into? How could he possibly find and not piss off a chick for that length of time? He couldn't back down from the challenge now; he just couldn't immediately admit defeat. He would think of something or die trying.

House smiled with more confidence than he felt: "You're on."

The two men bumped fists to seal the deal.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

House was pissed. He was pissed with Wilson and he was pissed with himself. He should have never gotten into this situation. He was going to end up humiliated and out five big ones.

He paced up and down the halls of PPTH trying to think of a plan. Nothing was coming to mind. Where could he meet someone? The nurses at PPTH either knew him or knew of him and avoided him like the plague due to his nasty demeanor. He was sure that there wasn't one of them who would consider going out with him. Then he started imagining the humiliation of asking a nurse out, getting turned down, and then finding out that she spread that tidbit of gossip all over the hospital. He couldn't deal with that. He'd have to find a date outside of the hospital.

He found himself on the balcony overlooking the lobby. Cuddy was down there addressing a group of nursing students. He was pissed at her too. Because of Cuddy he needed to interview and hire new ducklings _and _because of Wilson he needed to find a girlfriend. This sucked. This was way too much of a disturbance in his life and he needed to take out his wrath on someone. He pondered going down there and embarrassing Cuddy in front of the new kids. A lovely remark about her gargantuan ass would suffice. Then he saw a familiar face. What was _she _doing here? She was wearing the same royal blue scrubs as the rest; she must be a nursing student. He watched as she glanced wide-eyed up at him and then quickly looked away, slinking deeper into the group. _Trying to hide, huh?_ There is no hiding from the almighty House.

Although he was quite fond of his new favorite plaything, he was too full of pent-up anger to think about his actions. He took the elevator to the lobby and limped towards the group.

"What have we here, Cuddy? Some new butt-wipers?"

Cuddy sighed loudly in exasperation. "_Doctor_ House. These are our new nursing students starting their clinical rotations this week. _Try_ to be nice."

"Hmm, nursing students, huh? Did she tell you how much _fun_ you're gonna have, changing shitty sheets from our gomer, I mean, coma patients?"

Hissing through her teeth, Cuddy said: "_Doctor. House._ Will you please excuse us so I can finish the orientation?"

House started wandering through the crowd, leering at the pretty girls. He seemed to walk aimlessly, but he was slowly and purposefully making his way towards Randi.

"It's always nice to see fresh meat in this place. By the way, I'm looking for a randy girl to keep me company. Any volunteers?"

Cuddy screamed at him: "House! Get out of here! Go to the clinic and see some patients for a change."

He stopped right in front of her: "How about you? You look like a _randy_ girl to me."

He stooped a bit and got right in her face: Are you? Are you randy?"

Her face was beet red. She could hear the twins snickering behind her back. With a trembling hand, she pointed to her name badge: "No, Doctor House, my name is Isabelle."

He reared back: "Isabelle? Are you sure? You look like a _Randi_ to me."

She felt the fear. Her secret would be exposed. Her heart was pounding and she was holding her breath, just like she used to do when she was scared as a child. Any minute now, she would pass out from oxygen deprivation and really embarrass herself. She looked up at him, pleading with her eyes for him not to reveal her secret. He had been so nice to her; why was he being so mean now?

House saw the fear in her eyes, but he was so out of control that he was past caring about anyone else. He started to make another flippant remark, but Cuddy grabbed his arm and tugged him around to face her.

"Clinic! Now!"

Cuddy didn't let go of his arm until she had pulled him to the clinic door. She dragged him right up to the desk and said to Nurse Brenda: "Dr. House is logging in right now! And he needs to stay for four hours."

Nurse Brenda chuckled inwardly: '_Yeah, right. Like I have control over this asshole._' But as she handed Dr House a pen so that he could sign in, she merely said: "Yes Dr Cuddy."

Isabelle couldn't believe it. Naturally she had heard of Dr. House. You couldn't be in the medical field without knowing about his brilliance in diagnostics. She couldn't believe that it was the _famous Dr Hou_s_e _that she had been screwing this past month. His words had just been so embarrassing. She knew that half the class was laughing at her. Thankfully Dr Cuddy had pulled him away before he said anything else about her. She would have to go talk to him tonight and ask him to keep her job a secret. She wondered if he would cooperate or not. She was almost paralyzed with fear. Her instructor took pity on her and talked to her privately for a few minutes. Ms Lawson told her to ignore Dr House. He was a jerk and well known for terrorizing the nurses. If he annoyed her again, Isabelle was to report his behavior to her and she would tell Dr Cuddy about it. Isabelle just nodded, too afraid to open her mouth. She was so upset that she would probably stutter if she spoke, and that would just be more ammunition for the twins to use later.

She got her rotation assignment; she would be on the cardiac floor for the next two months. She was happy to see that the twins were assigned elsewhere. The less that she saw of them, the better.

She finally made it through the day and rushed to her car before anyone could catch up to her. She knew that the twins would undoubtedly tease her about the incident and she couldn't handle it today. She needed to talk to the Doc first. If he wasn't willing to keep her secret, she didn't know what she was going to do.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

House went home early. He knew she would show up after the scene in the lobby today and he was going to be ready for her.

It was 6PM when he heard the knock on his door. He limped slowly to the door and opened it. Randi was standing there with a frightened look on her face. He didn't say anything, just cocked one eyebrow at her. She swallowed hard and then said softly: "May I come in?"

"I don't usually let strangers come in my place, even young cute ones. Funny thing is, I thought I knew you. You look just like this girl Randi that I like to screw, but you said earlier that your name isn't Randi. So I guess I don't know you."

"Randi's just my stage name. It sounds sexier than Isabelle. What guy wants to screw a girl with that moniker? _'Isabelle'_ is not what a guy wants for his fantasy girl."

"I don't know. Isabelle. Is-a-belle."

The way he said her name made her weak in the knees. It was as if he was moaning it during the height of passion.

"Please. Can I come in so we can talk?"

House stood aside and let her in.

She stood by the sofa, wringing her hands. "I was so afraid you were going to rat me out today. Please don't tell anyone how you know me. I don't want them to know how I support myself to get through school. I'm afraid that they will kick me out if they find out."

House frowned: "Why would they kick you out? Why would they care how you earn your tuition money as long as they get it on time?"

"Because it's a Catholic college and I had to sign a morals clause. If they knew what I was doing, they would probably see that as a violation of the clause and kick me out. Please don't say anything. I only have one year left to go."

House smirked. He had her over a barrel. He could get her to do anything now just by threatening to rat her out.

"What's in it for me if I don't tell?"

Her face grew paler and her chin started trembling. "I don't know, what do you want?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure, but it seems like I'm holding all the cards now."

Tears welled in her eyes. "Pl-please, Dr. House. Pl-please don't rat me out. I've worked so hard to get this f-far and I'm almost there."

House didn't answer her. He stalked into the kitchen and she followed him like a puppy. He took down a glass and poured himself a shot of scotch and slugged it back. He leaned against the counter and surveyed her. She was pale and trembling. He was angry; he shouldn't have made that bet with Wilson and Cuddy's insistence that he hire new ducklings had pushed him over the edge. He needed to take it out on something or someone, and Randi was right here. It wasn't really her fault, but it gave him an excuse to punish someone, although she was not the person he really wanted to punish.

Harshly, he said: "I'm asking you for the last time. What's in it for me if I don't tell?"

A tear leaked out of each eye as she stuttered: "Wha, what do you-u w-want?"

He waved his hand towards his groin and barked: "Blow me."

She nodded and immediately got on her knees. Her hands trembled as she undid his belt and unzipped his jeans. She tugged his jeans down and released his cock. He was only half hard, more angry than horny. He just wanted to humiliate her and this was the first thing that came to mind. He saw her quickly swipe the tears away from her eyes and then she took him in her mouth.

Her mouth felt good, but it didn't feel like it usually did when she blew him. He knew she wasn't into it. Her usual enthusiasm was not there and he was sure that he felt one or two hot tears fall on his prick.

He fisted her hair, hard. "What the hell kind of crappy blow job is this? This isn't your usual quality. This is how you want to guarantee my silence? It ain't going to work, babe."

He could feel the change. She was trying harder. Her lips gripped tighter and her tongue ran deliciously along the underside of his dick, the way she usually did it. He started ramming his dick into her mouth and she did her best to take it without gagging. He looked down at her, expecting to see the erotic picture of her giving him a BJ. What he saw instead disturbed him. Her face was pale, not flushed with sexual excitement. He could see the tear streaks on her face. "_My god, I'm raping her. What the hell kind of animal am I?"_

"Stop!"

She stopped moving and just held his dick in her mouth as she rolled her eyes upwards to look at him. He could see the fear in her eyes.

"Open up."

She opened her mouth and he pulled out of her. He tucked himself back into his boxers and pulled up his jeans.

The girl in front of him looked even more scared if that were possible. "You didn't like it? I'm sorry. I'm just a little upset. C'mon, let's go in the bedroom. I'll give you a really good screw."

House waved his hand towards the door: "Just go."

"But, but Doc. Please. Let me,,"

He yelled at her: "Just go! Get out of here!"

Tears bubbled up in her eyes again and spilled over. The trembling started in her lower lip and quickly spread to her jaw. She grabbed her purse and made a beeline for the door. In her haste, she tripped and spilled the contents of her purse on the floor. A sob escaped her mouth as she quickly fumbled on the floor trying desperately to throw all of her belongings back inside. She bit her lip hard, trying to keep from crying in front of him.

"Go, already!"

Clutching the purse to her chest, she ran for the door, hoping that she wasn't leaving anything behind, because she knew that she wasn't ever going to be back in his apartment again.

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House poured himself another shot of scotch. He was angry with himself. He had just screwed up a good thing with her. For 500 bucks a night, he had had a really good time with her. She was a lot of fun in bed and actually pretty easy to be with outside of bed. She made great pancakes too. He slugged the scotch back and slammed the glass down. _Damn it!_ This was all Wilson and Cuddy's fault. Between his bet and her bitching, no wonder he was out of sorts and taking it out on his plaything.

He poured himself a double shot and started towards the living room. He noticed something on the floor and stooped to pick it up. In her haste to get out of the door, Randi had left something behind: her driver's license.

House sat on the couch and sipped his scotch while he looked it over. _Isabelle Caroline Walker._ Her address was a crappy neighborhood in Trenton. Her birthday was in May and she was just 25 years old. He rubbed his thumb over the photo. She had a small smile on her pretty face. He had liked seeing her smile, liked it even better when she was screaming his name in ecstasy when he made her come. It was a real rush for him, a 48-year-old cripple, to make a hot young thing like her come so hard.

He wondered how she got to this place, stripping and hooking to get through nursing school. He personally thought of nursing as a shit job, but he guessed it was better than stripping and having strange men fuck you for money. He wondered how she felt about him; did she enjoy his company at all or was it just about the money? He wanted to think that she enjoyed him somewhat, after all he did give her great orgasms and as a doctor, he knew she wasn't faking. They seemed to have fun watching TV and having breakfast together. He let her use his stereo and she seemed to really enjoy listening to Clapton, Hendrix and the others on his great sound system. He always had the money ready when she got here. He put it in an envelope and left it on the coffee table so that he didn't have to hand it to her. That helped to fuel his fantasy that she wasn't there for the money, that she was screwing him because she wanted to. Some nights, it almost felt like she was a girlfriend and not a hooker. He knew that was dangerous thinking that way, but he couldn't help it. He was entitled to his one little fantasy after all the crap he had had in his life. Of course, she was too young to really be his girlfriend. What 25-year-old would hook up with a 48-year-old cripple? He smirked. Boy, if it were true, other men would certainly be jealous, wondering what he had under the hood that attracted her to him.

He sipped his scotch as he stared at her picture. An idea appeared in his slightly tipsy brain. He muddled over it for a bit and then decided to go for it. He shoved her license in his back pocket, grabbed his helmet and headed out the door.

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Isabelle managed not to cry until she got in the car. The tears started falling as she turned the ignition. As she drove away, she let out a sob or two, and then angrily slammed her fist down on her thigh. _Stop it! Stop it! Crying won't solve anything. Think! You gotta think!_

She thought and thought all the way home, but she couldn't figure out what to do. She didn't know how to keep House from tattling on her. The ball was truly in his court and she was at his mercy. She hadn't felt this out of control since she was 16, and it scared the piss outta her.

She pulled into the parking lot of her building and parked the car. Slowly she climbed the three flights of stairs to her place. She dropped her purse on the small table and plopped on the futon. Her anxiety was at an all-time high. She knew that there was nothing that she could do to influence him to help her. All she could do was hope. She glanced at her watch; it was only 7:30. It seemed like she had been at his place for hours. She hadn't had any dinner, but she didn't have any appetite now. Opening the cookie tin, she took out one cookie and nibbled on it while she pulled her old backpack out of the closet. She went to her corner and sat down in her familiar way, with her back to the wall, legs stretched out in front. Isabelle went through her little ritual, hoping it would calm her down like it usually did. She pulled out her dirty stuffed dog and gave him a big hug. She whispered her fears to him while a few more tears fell and wet his fur. Then she sat him on the floor pressed up against her leg and she pulled out her sketch pad and colored pencils. Although she knew that no one was in the apartment except her, she couldn't help looking around before she started drawing, just to make sure. It was just another part of her ritual. Satisfied that she was truly alone, she flipped the pad open to a fresh page, opened the box of pencils and started drawing.

She was completely lost in her work, so lost that she didn't hear the heavy footsteps coming up the stairs. When the cane knocked heavily against her door, she jumped, the pencil flying across the page and leaving a huge black mark across her drawing. She started to shake again; who could be knocking at her door? No one ever came to visit her. It couldn't be the landlord; she had just paid this month's rent, and none of the neighbors ever visited. She gathered the pencils and put them back into the box. She shoved the pencil box and the sketchpad back into the backpack. Carrying the backpack and hugging the dog to her side, she walked slowly towards the door.

"Who is it?"

"It's your doctor and he's very tired after climbing three flights of stairs so let him in."

Isabelle trembled in fear; how had he found her? She had only a cell phone and wasn't listed in the phone book. She had googled herself once and nothing turned up. Yet, somehow, he had found her.

"Um, just a minute."

She hurriedly stuffed the dog into the backpack and zipped it up. Shoving it into the back of the closet, she closed the closet door and then moved slowly towards the front door. Biting her lip, she opened the door cautiously.

There was the Doc, standing there in the dirty hallway, tapping his cane against the floor. She was embarrassed to have been found, embarrassed to have him see the small dreary apartment where she lived. She had to ask him in; she knew his leg must be hurting after climbing three flights of stairs. And she needed to know why he had come and how he found her.

Isabelle opened the door wider: "Come in."

House stepped into the small room and looked around. It was just a small studio apartment. One open door led to a bathroom and he presumed the other door was a closet. There was a small kitchenette area with a half size refrigerator and a tiny stove. He saw her purse lying on a small table that had 2 mismatched chairs pushed under it. In the middle of the room was a futon that he presumed did double duty as a bed and couch. There was no TV or dresser; her clothes were neatly stacked in milk crates up against the far wall. Two other milk crates held some books. From House's viewpoint, they seemed to be mostly textbooks and a few tattered paperbacks. On top of one of the milk crates was a boom box with a small stack of CD's next to it. Next to the futon stood a scratched up coffee table, which held a stack of nursing textbooks and a beat-up cookie tin.

In an apologetic voice, Isabelle said: "It's not much. It's all I can afford."

"I thought you made pretty good money at the club."

"Some nights are better than others. I really don't take guys in the back very often and that's where the real money is. This dump costs me $950 a month plus utilities. I spend a bunch of money to make money at the club. Waxing, manicures, makeup and costumes cost a lot of money. Tuition and books are expensive too."

House continued to look around. It was small, not many possessions, but it was neat and clean.

Still not looking him in the eye, Isabelle asked: "Would you like to sit down? Can I get you something to drink?"

"Got any beer?"

She shook her head: "No, sorry. I have some scotch that a client gave me. Want a snort?"

"Yeah, sure."

Isabelle fetched two glasses and poured a shot into each. House grabbed the bottle from her and looked at the label. "Talisker? This is good stuff."

She nodded: "Yeah, it is good. Like I said, a client gave it to me as a good-bye present."

"He went away?"

"Well, sorta. I used to clean his house and give him a BJ once a week. Then he got married and didn't need me anymore. I guess you could say I got replaced."

"You clean houses, too? What else do you do to make a buck?"

"I used to clean houses, but not right now. I lost all my regular clients. They either moved, or got married or something. I'm just at the club now. But I've waitressed and other stuff."

Isabelle's hands were shaking a little as she held her glass. Finally she screwed up her courage and asked: "Dr House, how did you find me?"

House reached into his back pocket and pulled out her driver's license. He held it up for her to see and then he laid it on the coffee table.

"Oh. I guessed I missed that when I was picking up the contents of my bag. Thanks for bringing it to me, but you didn't have to do that."

House didn't say anything for a few minutes, but he continued to look around and check out the small apartment. Isabelle sat next to him on the small futon, sipping on the scotch. She was still trembling, so she needed to hold the glass with both hands to keep it from spilling. She sat silently, waiting for him to make the next move. He couldn't have come just to bring her the driver's license; he must have another agenda.

Finally House pointed at the tin of cookies sitting on the coffee table: "Are those home-made?"

"Yes, I made them yesterday. Would you like one?"

He eyed them suspiciously, "What kind are they?"

"Peanut butter with little butterscotch chips in them."

She slid the tin over to him and he took one. He had thought the combination sounded weird, but it tasted great. It was soft and chewy, just the way he liked his cookies.

He took another one: "These are good. Can you make chocolate chip, too?"

She nodded: "Sure, and oatmeal raisin."

"Can you cook real food too, like meat loaf?"

Isabelle shrugged: "Sure. If I don't know how, I can follow a recipe."

He swallowed the rest of that cookie and turned to face her: "I have a proposition for you."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"You want me to do _what_?"

House sighed. He had already explained it once, and he hated repeating himself. She slept with men for money. That had to involve acting with most of them, why should this be such a stretch for her?

"OK. I'll explain it again. I have a bet going with my friend Wilson. I need to find and keep a girlfriend for six months or I'll owe him five grand. You are going to be my girlfriend so I can win the bet and your prize is that I won't rat you out."

"What do I have to do to be your girlfriend?"

"You know, the usual stuff. We go out of dates where he will see us. He comes over to watch football; you make us some snacks and hang out and watch the game with us. He comes over early in the morning for something, and sees you getting out of my bed."

"Won't he think it odd when we never date on Friday or Saturday nights?"

House grew more frustrated: "We have to date on those nights; those are official date nights."

"Look, those are the nights I have to work. I want to help you out, I really do, but I have to pay rent too. I'll only be working two nights a week during school and it's hard to stretch the money that far. I can't _not_ go to work. I can be your girlfriend the rest of the time."

"That won't work. We have to date on weekends. It would be weird if we didn't. And I can't tell him that my girlfriend is a stripper. Eventually he will see you around the hospital, so he can't know about your occupation."

House stood up and started pacing the small room. "How much does this dump cost you?"

"It's $950 a month, plus utilities."

"Jesus, that's a lot for this shithole."

He paced some more, thinking furiously. "How much money do you need to stay afloat?"

"Oh, Geez, rent, utilities, gas, cell phone, waxing and manicures."

He cut her off: "Forget the work expenses. Tell me everything else."

She sighed in frustration: "OK. Rent, utilities, food, gas, car insurance, cell phone, plus saving for next semester's tuition and books. I have my uniforms and a stethoscope. I may need other supplies for school that I don't know about yet."

"But your biggest monthly expense is rent and utilities."

Isabelle nodded.

House sat back down and tapped his cane against the floor.

He looked around the room again. If she could make this dump look decent, she could make his place look like a palace. And if the rest of her culinary skills were as good as her pancakes and these cookies, he could be eating quite well. He already knew how good she was in bed and that they were quite compatible in that area. They liked to watch TV together. What else was there?

"So you give up the apartment and you move in with me. Then you can be my girlfriend 24/7. I'll take care of the rent so you won't need your job."

Isabelle's eyes grew huge. "What? You want me to move in with you?"

"Yeah, why not? You live with me for the next 6 months. That way you won't have to come up with the rent money; you won't need to strip on weekends."

"But I have other bills and there's next semester's tuition. I don't have enough money saved up for that yet."

He sighed and leaned his head against his cane. He thought for a few minutes how he could make this work for both of them. He realized that he paid her $500 a night to sleep over. He wondered if she would take $500 a week. That would be a deal for him; 24/7 access to her body for the same price as one night, not to mention the other perks.

"Here's the deal. You move in with me. Everyone will think you are my girlfriend. You will cook, clean, do laundry and, most importantly, keep my bed warm. I will cover the rent, utilities, groceries _and_ pay you $500 a week. That way, you can cover your other expenses and save up for tuition. No one will know about our little deal. It will be just between us. And it's just for 6 months until the bet is over."

Isabelle considered his plan. It was overwhelming; she was putting her whole life into his hands and that frightened her. If she didn't do it, he would rat her out. If she did do it, he would pay her to live with him. He didn't seem so bad. He was good in bed and he was nice to her. He had never requested any kind of kinky sex. He had a great apartment with a big bed and lots of hot water. She'd be a lot closer to the hospital than having to drive from Trenton every day. She wouldn't have to strip or screw strange men anymore. There was just one big problem.

"Six months only takes me to March. I won't finish school until June. What happens to me when the bet is finished? And what happens if you get tired of me, or if you find a real girlfriend?"

"_Pfffft._ Babe, the way you screw me, it will be a cold day in hell before I get tired of you. I haven't had a girlfriend in 6 years, cuz the last one did this to me." He pointed to his mangled thigh.

Isabelle looked horrified: "What the hell did she do to you?"

"Long story. Tell you some other time. As far as the time frame, hell, if you can put up with me until March, you can stay until June. If something happens to our arrangement before you graduate, I will help you get a new apartment. I'll do the first month and the deposit. How's that?"

She nodded slowly: "That seems fair."

House looked at her closely: "So you'll do it?"

She stared back at him. "Yes, I'll be your fake girlfriend until June."

"Great. Grab some stuff for tonight and let's go home. We'll iron out all the details tomorrow. Oh, and bring the rest of the cookies."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Isabelle grabbed a uniform and all the other things that she would need for tomorrow. Finally, she stuffed the cookie tin into her backpack and accompanied House down the stairs. He was cranky; the stairs just reminded him of his physical limitations, but Isabelle ignored his rants. She just took the steps one at a time with him. They finally reached the bottom and he had to stop and rub his thigh for a minute.

"I could give you a massage tonight if you want."

He looked at her, expecting to see pity in her eyes. If there was, he was going to call the whole deal off. He wasn't going to spend six months with someone who pitied him. Instead of the expected pity, he was surprised to see a gentle kindness in her eyes. That caught him off guard. He wasn't used to people being kind to him. Ah, but he was paying her to be his girlfriend; she was just starting in on her act.

He smirked: "Oh, I want, but you might be massaging a different leg than what you are thinking about."

She just smiled and said: "Whatever makes you happy. I'll massage whichever leg you want."

"How about all three?"

She laughed: "Sure, and I'll save the middle one for last."

"I like the way you think. Race ya home."

"See you there."

Isabelle got in her car and followed House's bike out of the lot. He had called it 'home'. She wondered if she would ever think of his apartment that way.

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House, naturally, beat her back to the apartment. The bike moved faster than her old car and had the advantage of being able to weave in and out of traffic. But he had waited outside for her and she thought that was really nice of him. She followed him inside.

As he placed his helmet inside the closet, he said: "We'll work out all the details tomorrow. I think most of your stuff will fit except the furniture. Do you want to store it?"

"Oh, no. That's all crap I found around the neighborhood. It's not worth keeping. I just need my clothes and my books, stuff like that."

House nodded: "OK. That's good. We can find room for that stuff. I'm starving. How about some Chinese, and then you can give me that massage that you mentioned?"

"I'm not that hungry."

He tilted his head and stared at her: "Not hungry, or don't have any money? I told you; I'm taking care of the groceries and that includes take-out, got it?"

She nodded: "Can I have General Tso's chicken?"

"Sure, babe."

House picked up the phone, hit speed dial #4, and barked an order into the phone. "Thirty minutes. Come on, let's find you some space."

He hobbled down the hall to the bedroom and Isabelle followed. He stopped by the dresser and tapped the bottom of it with his cane. "The bottom two drawers are empty. You can have those. If you need more space, we'll shift some stuff tomorrow. But, at least, you can start there."

"Thanks, Doc."

"Oh, yeah, and you really should call me Greg. That would sound more girlfriend-like."

Smiling, she said: "OK, Greg."

"Do you go by Isabelle or do your friends call you Issy for short?"

She shrugged; she didn't really have any friends, but hesitated saying that, fearing it would make her sound too pathetic. "Either is OK. A couple of the girls at school call me Issy."

He nodded: "OK. So it's Greg and Issy, got it? No more Doc and Randi. Although sometimes," He pulled her into an embrace: "I might want you to dress up in that little nurse's costume and be Randi again, OK?"

She slipped her arms around his neck: "As long as I can call you Doc when I'm Randi."

His hands slid down her back and cupped the cheeks of her ass: "Hmmm, yes, when you're 'randy', you can call me Doc."

He pressed against her; she could feel his arousal through his jeans. She could feel the heat starting to form in her belly. What was it about this guy that he turned her on so much? She reached up and kissed his cheek. Grinding her pelvis against his, she whispered: "I'm always 'randy' for you, Doc."

She could see the lust in his eyes. He cupped her breast and bent to kiss her. As he rubbed his lips against hers, he breathed the words into her mouth: "Are you? If I reach into your pants right now, are you wet for me?"

Issy unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans in a flash. She pushed them down over her hips, grabbed his hand and placed it between her legs. He grinned as he felt her folds; then he parted them and slipped two fingers inside. "Oh, damn, woman, you are wet."

His fingers slid inside easily. He finger fucked her for a minute and then the doorbell rang.

House groaned: "What timing. The food is here."

He removed his fingers and held them up to his mouth. He made sure she was watching as he licked them clean, not missing the lustful look in her eyes as he did it. Wiggling his eyebrows, he said: "Appetizer. Pull your pants up while I get the door."

She got some plates and joined him on the couch to eat. The little cartons were spread out on the coffee table like a banquet. House taught her to eat with chopsticks. She learned very quickly, so fast, in fact, that she started stealing shrimp from his dish. Proud of her accomplishment, she just laughed as he protested. He stole some of her chicken in retaliation. They had a couple of her cookies for dessert. When they were full, he put his arm around her and pulled her closely to his side as they watched some television. He felt surprisingly relaxed and comfortable with her in his space. Perhaps winning the bet wasn't going to be so hard after all.

When the program was over, he kissed her temple. "Bed?"

Issy nodded: "Yup. I'll just clean this up really quickly and be right there. Don't start without me."

"Cute. You can massage the outer legs first and then the middle one."

"You got it. I'll be right there."

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House limped down to the bedroom. He swallowed two Vicodin and then stripped off all of his clothes. Lying down on the bed, he let out a small groan of relief at finally being horizontal. The day had taken its toll of him. He hoped that Issy was as good at massage as she was at screwing.

Issy walked in with a bottle of lotion in her hand. "Did someone call for a massage?"

"Is it a naked massage?"

"Of course."

Issy slowly stripped off while House watched and then got to work. First she massaged his good leg. The muscles were quite tight from overwork, compensating for his bad leg. She soothed them as much as she could. Then she started on his right foot and worked her way up his bad leg. When she got to the scar, she softly said: "Let me know if I rub too hard or something."

House nodded; he was quite relaxed from her ministrations. Issy gently worked on his mangled thigh and after about 10 minutes, he could feel the pain slacking off. He knew that part of it was the Vicodin kicking in, but the massage still felt good. He now felt ready for his third leg to get its 'massage'.

"Someone else needs attention now." He made his cock twitch.

"I see, and what kind of attention would make him happy?" As she spoke, Issy slowly rubbed her cheek up the length of his cock. He moaned at the feel of her soft skin against his hardening shaft. She came to the tip, turned her head and gently took just the head in her mouth. She swirled her tongue around the opening while gently suckling on the head.

House softly murmured: "He likes that."

"Ummm, good." Her tongue ran up and down the length of his dick, savoring his taste. She licked his balls and then gently took one into her mouth.

"Ah, God, that feels so good."

Issy continued licking and sucking until his dick was rock hard. Then she slowly slid her body up his, stopping to rub his cock between her breasts. He grinned at the sight of his red cock sliding in between her round, white breasts.

"Oh, Jesus, Issy, that's a beautiful sight. You have the most perfect, luscious breasts. Slide up here; I need a taste."

House put his hands under Issy's arms and tugged her further up on him. He laved her nipple with his tongue and then suckled hard. Issy ran her fingers through his hair and shivered with pleasure. The ache between her legs was getting stronger and she wanted some relief soon.

His hand lightly caressed its way down her body until it found the goal. Her core was very wet, and he was pleased that she was so turned on. He slid two fingers in while his thumb teased her swollen nub. She moaned with pleasure and started riding his fingers.

"Randi?"

"Yeah, Doc?"

"Get condom, climb aboard and ride the horsey."

House pulled open the drawer on the bedside table. Issy reached in and grabbed a condom. She quickly opened it and rolled it on him. She positioned herself above him, teased her entrance with his head for a moment, and then slowly slid him inside of her. House enjoyed the look of pure pleasure on her face as she moved on top on him. Her eyes were closed, her face a bit flushed. She was breathing heavily and when she licked her dry lips; that almost sent him over the edge right there.

"Open your eyes, babe."

Issy obeyed and their eyes locked as she rode him, her thrusts becoming faster as their excitement climbed. House had one hand on her hip, guiding her rhythm and the other hand on her breast, cupping it and tweaking her nipple. He could tell by her breathing that she was getting close, so he let his hand slip down to her clit, rubbing it gently at first, and then harder as she started moaning with pleasure.

"Oh, fuck, oh, fuck. Gawd, Doc, you feel so fucking good."

Her words made him thrust hard up into her and his thumb rubbed even harder on her clit. Her breath hitched, he felt a flood of wetness and she cried out as she came. Her walls contracted and the sensations sent him over the edge right after her. He thrust up into her a few more times as they rode out their orgasms together. Finally Issy collapsed on top on him; he wrapped his arms around her and just held on.

He felt his erection shrinking inside of her and before he could fall out, her hand reached down and grabbed the base of his dick. She eased off of him, making sure that the condom stayed on. Then she rolled the condom off of him, and tossed it in the trashcan. Immediately her mouth was on him, licking him clean, as she had done every other time that they had had sex. He loved the feel on her tongue on his softening member. When she deemed him clean enough, she lay down on her side facing him, her fingers teasing the hairs on his chest.

He kissed her mouth and said: "Good massage. _All_ my legs feel better now."

She kissed him back: "Good."

House kissed and nibbled his way around her jaw and down her neck. When he had finished tasting her, he gave her a gentle slap on the ass and said: "Flip over."

As she turned over to face away from him, he turned off the lamp. In the darkness, he spooned up against her. He really enjoyed cuddling up to her as he fell asleep, although he would never admit to it. He pulled her closer so that her ass was pressed up against his soft member. He rubbed it against her for a moment as his hand caressed her breasts. He kissed her shoulder as his hand gently stroked his way down her belly. When he reached her Mound of Venus, he simply held his hand on top of it, softly pressing her into his body.

As they were drifting off to sleep, he mumbled: "Oh, yeah, there is one more part of the deal. No more waxing. I wanna feel some hair down here."

Issy smiled: she hated waxing. It would be easy to comply with this request. "No problem, Doc. I'll stop waxing."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

After her day at the hospital, Issy ran back to her apartment and grabbed some more of her clothes. She wasn't one hundred percent sure how things were going to work out with the Doc, but she wanted to at least have enough clothes to last her until the weekend without having to drive back and forth to Trenton everyday.

Doc had texted her mid-morning, requesting meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner. He said he would give her grocery money when he got home that night. So after picking up things at her apartment, her next stop was the grocery store. She hadn't made an inventory of his kitchen yet, so she just grabbed the things that she would need to make tonight's dinner, planning to make a complete shopping list later.

She lugged the groceries and her things into the apartment. Quickly she put everything away and changed into her running clothes. Issy hated to miss a day of running. She didn't have a course mapped out yet, so she just ran what felt like 2 miles, making a mental note to plot out a route tomorrow on her way home.

When she got back to the apartment, she went into the kitchen. She quickly made the meatloaf and stuck it in the oven. It would need an hour to bake so she had time to shower and then make the mashed potatoes. Just as she started down the hall towards the bathroom, House walked in the door.

He looked her over and frowned: "You're all sweaty and I wasn't the cause."

Issy didn't know what to make of that statement. She wasn't sure if he was pissed or just making a joke. So she just shrugged: "I try to run 6 days a week, keep in shape. Want me to take your things?"

House handed her his backpack, helmet and jacket and Issy put everything into the closet.

He grumped: "You should kiss your boyfriend when he comes home from a hard day's work."

Issy walked over and cupped his face with both hands. She leaned up and brushed her lips over his. She ran her tongue over his lower lip before sucking it gently. Suddenly she felt his hand on the back of her head and his mouth covered hers completely. His tongue demanded entrance into her mouth and her lips parted, allowing his urgent exploration.

When he had kissed her thoroughly, he pulled back still holding her lower lip between his teeth. Issy looked into his eyes and saw his need. When he finally released her lip, she whispered: "What would make you happy tonight?"

His eyes crinkled and the corners of his mouth turned up just a little bit. It put her in mind of the Big Bad Wolf smiling at Little Red Riding Hood. Issy felt a tinge of fear; what had she gotten herself into? How would he treat her now that he 'owned' her? She trembled when his hand grabbed her breast and gave it a good squeeze.

"In the immortal words of Jeff Foxworthy, when a man comes home, he wants something to eat, a beer and to see something naked."

Issy's mouth dropped open a little bit, but she recovered enough to ask: "Which order would you like that in?"

House laughed. "What order are you prepared to serve it to me?"

"Well, how 'bout I get you a beer now, and I'll run take a quick shower and then I'll finish making dinner. After dinner, I'll get naked?"

"Hmmmm, that's not bad. Maybe I'll have you get naked during dinner so I have some nice scenery to look at while I eat."

"Whatever you say, Doc. You wanna sit on the couch and I'll bring you a beer?"

House chuckled and limped over to the couch. Issy fetched a beer and handed it to him along with the remote control. His eyes watched her ass sashay away from as she headed down the hall and then he clicked the TV on.

He didn't make her get naked during dinner after all. She made him a plate and brought it to him as he sat on the couch. Issy stood next to him until he took a bite.

"Is it OK?" she asked nervously.

He nodded: "It's fine; I just need some ketchup."

Issy hurried to fetch the bottle for him. "Anything else?"

He frowned, puzzled why she would just be standing next to him like that instead of getting her own food. "Just grab me another beer when you come back with your own plate."

Issy nodded and did as he asked. She handed him his beer and sat down at the other end of the couch. After squirting some ketchup on her slice of meatloaf, she dug in. When House cleaned his plate and asked for seconds, Issy got up right away and refilled his plate.

When House finished his second plate, he swigged the rest of the beer and burped loudly as he set the empty bottle down on the coffee table. He muted the TV and said: "OK. Ground rules. I hate to cook, clean and do laundry. Those are your jobs."

Issy nodded: "What do you like to eat?"

"Meat. Steak, burgers, pork chops, pot roast. Vegetables are a garnish as far as I'm concerned."

"What about chicken or casseroles? I can make spaghetti and lasagna."

"That's fine as long as there is meat in the sauce."

"Lots of meat, light on the veggies. Got it."

"When you clean, don't move my stuff. I need to be able to find it. Don't touch my guitars; they do not need to be dusted. You can dust the piano, but only use Lemon Pledge on it. Don't ever set a wet glass on it or use it as a table top in any way. How much more of your own stuff do you have to bring over?"

"Not much. Some kitchen stuff, some more clothes and books."

"No frou-frou decorations. No crocheted doilies or fuzzy toilet lid covers. None of that smelly potpourri crap. This is a man's apartment and I want to keep it looking and smelling that way. And no messing with my TiVO."

Issy nodded: "Got it."

He shot her a wicked smile and wiggled his eyebrows at her. "And sex whenever and wherever I want."

She smiled at him: "Is that all your ground rules?"

Smugly he said: "For now. I may come up with a few more. Think you can handle all of that?"

She purred: "Oh, I think so."

Then her tone grew serious: "Now I have a few of my own. You will not interfere with my schoolwork. Mondays through Fridays, I get up at 6AM so I can be at the hospital by 7. You will not keep me in bed and make me late. If I have homework to do, you will not interrupt me every 5 minutes with some silly request. I will cook dinner every night, keep the apartment clean and take care of you in every way that you could possibly want, but I will need some time to do my work. If I have homework, I'll try to do it before you get home or after I cook dinner, so that I'm at your disposal. But there will be times when I'll shut myself up in the bedroom so I can get some studying done. Can you handle that?"

Grudgingly he said: "I suppose. If it starts to interfere with my needs, I'll let you know."

Issy stated firmly: "It won't. I will meet your needs, but you will also allow me a small amount of space. Your _girlfriend_ needs to study after all. You don't want your _girlfriend_ flunking out of nursing school. That might be embarrassing."

She had a point. It would be rather embarrassing if Dr. House had a girlfriend who flunked out of nursing school. He'd have to allow her some time to study, but he was going to make damn sure he got everything he wanted out of her. She needed to understand who was in charge.

"Wednesdays are poker nights. I'll expect you to make a good impression on the guys, make us some snacks and then disappear while we play. That will be a good time for you to study. There are four guys who come over to play, including Dr James Wilson, head of oncology at PPTH, with whom I have this bet. He is leaving for a conference tomorrow, so there is no game tomorrow night. This gives us time to work out our lovey-dovey relationship before you have a chance to meet him. I'm going to tell him tomorrow that I have a date. He'll be thrilled and probably squeal like a girl. By the time he gets back from the conference, things will have moved quickly between us and you will have moved in with me."

"Won't he think that is rather fast?"

"Nah. Stacy moved in within a week. It won't seem out of character for me."

Issy nodded: "OK."

House jerked his chin at the clutter of dishes on the coffee table. "Why don't you take care of all of that while I watch some TV? And then you can take care of the rest of me."

Issy leaned over and slowly brushed her lips against his. Her tongue darted out and licked his lower lip. When he let out a soft moan, she slipped her tongue inside his mouth. It was a slow, sensual kiss, the kind that leaves one wanting more, much more. Issy pulled back, saw the blissful look on his face and smiled. He was half way to turned on already. Like most men, Doc was just one big horn dog. She had no worries about taking care of him in the bedroom or meeting most of his other needs. She hoped that he didn't have some secret kinky fetish that hadn't come out yet, but otherwise the only thing she worried about was if he would really uphold his part of the bargain and not rat her out. She planned on keeping him really happy so that the thought would never cross his mind. Then she realized that once Wilson knew about her, Doc would be that much more reluctant to let her go, cuz then he would lose the bet. She needed to meet Wilson as soon as possible. Until then, she would just fuck him into a coma every night.

Issy brushed her hand over his crotch; sure enough he was half hard already. She whispered in his ear: "Just give me 15 minutes to clean up and then I'll be back to make you happy. Is there anything in particular you would like me to wear for you? Just let me know."

She felt his cock twitch under her hand and she gave him a little squeeze. Then she grabbed all the dishes and took them into the kitchen, feeling Doc's eyes on her as she walked away.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Over lunch the next day, House let it slip that he has a date. As he had predicted, Wilson was thrilled by this news.

"So who is she? Where did you meet her?"

House shrugged casually: "She's a nursing student. I met her here."

Wilson's mouth dropped open: "A nursing student? How old is she? 20?"

House smirked: "She's of legal drinking age, that's all that matters."

"Seriously, how old is she?"

"She's a little older than your typical nursing student."

Wilson narrowed his eyes: "How much older?"

"She's 25."

Wilson gasped: "You're 48!"

"I think I know how old I am. So what? She's hot."

"But you're old enough to be,,,"

House held up his hand: "Stop. You told me to date. I have a date. If I remember correctly, you suggested dinner with a chance for sex that I didn't have to pay for. Well, I'm taking her out to dinner and we'll see what happens from there. And don't worry, Dad, I'll bring condoms!"

Wilson chuckled: "So what does this hottie look like?"

"She's about 5' 6", wavy brunette hair, gorgeous face, big blue eyes, slim but with a perky set of knockers. It's a little hard to tell when she's wearing scrubs. I'm looking forward to seeing her in regular clothes, and then peeling her out of them."

He smirked: "Gonna get lucky, huh?"

House laughed inwardly, if Wilson only knew just how lucky he had been already. "Yeah, I got a good feeling about this."

Wilson stood up to bus his tray. "Well I'll call you on Sunday when I get back. I'll wanna hear all about this big date."

As he walked away, House called after him: "If I don't answer, it just means we're still in bed!"

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Over the next few days, Issy tried to establish a routine and settle in. She woke at 6AM every weekday, showered and put on her scrubs. She made a pot of coffee and 2 egg sandwiches. She would wrap one up in aluminum foil for Doc and eat the other one on the way to the hospital. She did her clinical assignments and classroom work and was finished for the day by 4PM. Once she left PPTH, she shopped for groceries and then went home. She still found it strange to think of Doc's place as home, but she was trying to get used to it. She kept thinking that one morning she would just wake up and find herself back on her small futon in that horrible studio apartment.

When she arrived at Baker Street, Issy lugged the groceries inside and put them away. She'd start dinner preparations and then go for her run. When she returned from her run, she'd take another shower. She felt like she just couldn't shower enough, the practically endless hot water felt so luxurious. She would dress with care, perhaps low-rider jeans and a tight fitting shirt. Or maybe a cami top and lounge pants rolled down to her G-string. She dressed to emphasize her figure and to make sure Doc had an enjoyable view. She would work on her homework while making dinner. When Doc walked in the door, she would greet him with a kiss and put his things away. She would settle him on the couch with a beer and the remote control and then finish making dinner. After they ate, Issy would clean up the dishes and finish up her homework. Then she would sit on the opposite end of the couch and stare at whatever show he was watching. Eventually his long arm would reach across the length of the couch and pull her right up next to him. She would snuggle into his shoulder and wrap her arm around his waist. Within a few minutes, his hands would start wandering across her bare midriff, and up under her top until he reached her breast. Doc would let out a sigh as he cupped her breast and ran his thumb across her nipple. Issy would reach up and touch his cheek, guiding his lips down to hers. After a tender kiss, she would whisper: "How can I make you happy tonight?"

The TV would be turned off and they would stroll down the hall to the bedroom together. So far, the sex had been great and he hadn't asked for anything kinky. He gave her orgasms each time and she found herself looking forward to bedtime.

By Friday, Issy was starting to relax a little. Taking care of Doc was really pretty easy and she had the advantage of eating and living much better than she had been on her own. She really hoped that this would last, but she knew that she had better take precautions in case it didn't. During her lunch break on Friday, she phoned the club and told them that she had broken her ankle and would not be able to work for a few weeks. The boss's assistant was not very sympathetic, but promised to pass the message along. Issy hoped that she sounded convincing when she said how sorry she was and that she would phone as soon as she would be able to be on her feet again. Hanging up, Issy smiled. That ruse should give her about four weeks. By then she should know if things were going to work out with Doc or not. If they didn't, she had a safety net of her job to go back to. Her apartment was paid until the end of this month. So she had a couple weeks to decide if she wanted to pay for one more month, just in case things went south with the Doc. Issy figured that she had her bases fairly well covered, so when her lunch break was over, she went back to work with fewer worries. In four hours, the weekend would be here. Spending 24/7 with Doc over the weekend would be a good test to see if they were going to make it or not. Her biggest problem was remembering to call him Greg and not Doc. She really needed to work on that over the weekend, before she met Dr. Wilson.

House couldn't believe his luck. For a mere 500 bucks a week, he had someone who cooked his meals, did his laundry, cleaned his home and gave him sex whenever he wanted it. It was the deal of the century. He longed to brag to Wilson, but that of course would screw up the bet, so he couldn't do that.

When he woke up in the morning, Issy had already left for school, but he had coffee and a breakfast sandwich waiting for him. When he came home in the evening, she greeted him at the door with a lovely kiss, took his helmet and backpack, put them away and got him settled on the couch with a beer and the remote while she made dinner. She was always dressed to entice and smelled delicious. Issy cooked his favorite foods and always checked to make sure it was made the way he liked it. Sure he was spending a lot of extra money on groceries these days, but who cared? He was eating better than he had in years. And she was so cute with the grocery money. He'd hand her a fifty or hundred dollar bill and she always brought him the receipt and the exact change. He was surprised that she didn't keep the change as an extra bonus, but was pleased that she didn't. Hopefully it meant that she wasn't going to rip him off. She hadn't had much time to clean yet, but she promised to remedy that over the weekend. So far, she was holding up her end of the bargain and her schoolwork wasn't interfering with too much of his time. Granted she had only lived there a few days, but so far, so good.

He snuck out of work a little before 5PM on Friday, anxious to get a start on his weekend. Delicious dinner smells greeted him when he limped in the door of his apartment. His dick sprang to attention when Issy walked into the room. She was wearing a skimpy white tank top and french terry shorts so tiny that back in the day, they would have been called 'hot pants'. It was quite obvious that she was not wearing a bra as he had a great view of her nipples through the thin fabric.

"Happy Friday!" she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss.

House let his backpack and helmet fall to the floor. He wrapped his arms around Issy and pulled her close. "Hmmmm, happy Friday is right. I've got you all to myself for the weekend and no interruptions."

His mouth possessively covered her and his tongue demanded admission, which she immediately granted. He dropped his cane, slipped his hands under her top and slid them up her bare back. One hand slipped around to cup her breast while the other moved down inside her shorts.

He breathed into her mouth: "No panties, tonight. Such a naughty girl.

Grabbing her ass with both hands, he ground his hardness against her. Issy let out a small cry and leaned her head back, exposing her neck to his attention. He immediately responded by nipping the sweet spot between her neck and shoulder. He could feel the hardness of her nipples right through their clothing.

House couldn't wait to get to the bedroom; he wanted her right now.

He growled: "Need a condom, now."

Issy grabbed a strategically placed one from the end table.

House grinned in appreciation: "You little minx. You planned this."

"I try to anticipate your needs. I like to be ready for you."

"You're doing a damn good job."

House grabbed the condom and spun Issy around. He bent her over the back of the sofa and pulled her shorts down. Staring at her lovely white ass in the air, he quickly pushed his jeans and shorts down and rolled the condom on.

He nudged her legs further apart and placed his hand on her slit.

"Mmmm, you're already wet. That's my naughty girl."

He finger-fucked her for a moment and then in one swift move, thrust his cock inside of her. Issy cried out and House grabbed her hips, thrusting into her with wild abandon. Usually in this position, House would finger her clit or reach up and squeeze her breast. Tonight the sensations of her tight pussy overwhelmed him and all he wanted to do was fuck her as hard as he could. He climaxed quickly and collapsed on top of her, his bad leg no longer able to hold his weight. He took a moment to get his breathing back to normal and then managed to pull himself upright. He pulled his softening cock out of her and gave her a little slap on the ass.  
"Ah, fuck, that was delicious, Issy."

Issy gave him a saucy smile as she turned, knelt in front of him and pulled the condom off to clean him up. He found himself grinning as he watched her lick him clean. He loved it when she did that.

He watched her for a moment and then said: "I like it when you're on your knees with my dick in your mouth."

He saw a flash of something in her eyes, but it was gone quickly. She hummed and smiled as best she could with his dick still in her mouth.

"OH, Christ, that feels delicious, but save it for a little later. Let's have dinner and then I'll be ready for another go."

Issy rose and started to pull her shorts back up but House stayed her hand. "Leave those off. I want you naked for the rest of the night. Take this off too."

He pulled on the straps of her tank and Issy immediately slipped it off over her head.

He smiled at her lovely naked body. "Now tuck me back in."

Issy pulled up his jeans and zipped him back up. Then she looked up at him and asked: "Would you like a beer?"

He nodded and she scampered off to get it. He settled himself on the couch and accepted the beer from her. At his request, Issy knelt and removed his shoes and socks and then she returned to the kitchen to finish dinner preparations. House smiled as he watched her naked form moving around the kitchen. This was the life.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

It's amazing what a hot 25-year-old can do for a 48-year-old man's sex drive. After dinner, they watched TV for a while, but House was too stimulated with the naked babe next to him, so they headed off to bed. This time the sex was slow and tender. He laid her down in the middle of the bed and proceeded to kiss and lick her all over. She was dripping wet by the time he got to her core. He laved his tongue up and down her slit, poking it inside of her and sucking on her clit until she was right on the edge of the cliff. By then he was rock hard, pre-cum leaking out of his cock. He pulled on a condom and fucked her slowly at first. As their passion increased, he lifted her left leg and propped it on his shoulder for deeper penetration. He fucked her harder; Issy matching him thrust for thrust. He managed to squeeze his hand between their bodies and place his thumb on her clit. She fell over the edge quickly and he was right behind her. Wrapped up in each other's arms, they fell asleep shortly afterwards.

House woke up with a raging hard-on the next morning. When he poked it against Issy, she woke up and slid down the bed to take him in her mouth. After a few minutes of delicious sucking, Issy climbed on top and rode his cock. As much as he loved topping her and covering her body with his, he equally enjoyed it when she topped him. She was doing all the work plus he had the lovely view of her body, full movement of his hands to tweak her nipples or caress her clit while she fucked him. He loved watching the passion grow on her face as she came closer and closer to her climax. With one hand firmly on her hip, he thrust hard up into her while his other hand pressed on her clit. Her hands gripped his shoulders so tightly when she came that House was sure he would have bruises there later, but he didn't care as he stabbed deeply into her and shot his load. He bucked up into her a few more times riding out his orgasm and then allowed Issy to collapse on top on him. He kissed her neck, reveling in the warmth of her body on top of him. Finally as his softening dick threatened to fall out of her, he gave her a pat on the ass and she took care of the matter, ensuring that the condom stayed on as she slid off of him, removing it and cleaning him up. That little matter taken care of, she snuggled into his embrace and enjoyed the feel of his hand caressing her ass.

When his stomach growled, she got up and made him breakfast. After a nice meal of eggs, bacon and pancakes, they showered together and got dressed. House parked himself on the sofa, catching up on his TIVO'ed shows while Issy worked on cleaning the apartment. Later that afternoon, House was itching to get out, so they went down to the local motorcycle shop, bought a helmet and leather jacket for Issy and took off for a long ride. They ended up at a biker bar about 70 miles south of Princeton. House had been there before, but always alone. This time he came strutting in with his little hottie on his arm. He could see the other guys nodding in appreciation at his choice of arm candy. At the bar, he had her take off the leather jacket so the room could get a nice view of her pert, round breasts that were barely contained in the bright red lace-trimmed tank top that she was wearing. While they drank a beer, he kept a possessive hand on her body the whole time. There should be no doubt in anyone's mind who this hot babe belonged to.

House liked the attention, but at the same time, it made him feel somewhat inadequate because of his leg. He knew if there were to be a fight, he didn't stand a chance unless he got in a good hit with his cane.

He murmured in her ear: "Every man in this place is looking at you and wondering what you're doing with an old guy like me."

She smiled at him: "You're not old. Plus, they just don't know what kind of horsepower you've got under the hood, do they?"

House smirked: "You like my horsepower, huh?"

"Oh yeah, you've got a stallion under that hood. I love riding him."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her: "When we get home, I'll let you rev my engine again."

Issy grinned: "Looking forward to it, Doc."

He smirked: "Is that why you're hanging around with me? You like my little man?"

She shook her head, laughing: "He's not _little_, far from it. He's big and you know what to do with him. You've given me the best orgasms I've ever had in my life."

House tried to hide his surprise: "Seriously?"

Issy looked at him and saw the momentary flash of insecurity before he masked his face again. How could he not know how good he was in bed? Was it that big ugly scar that made him feel insecure? He couldn't handle certain positions, but so what? There were lots of ways to do it that he could handle.

She turned to face him and said: "Seriously. You're the hottest man I've ever fucked."

She captured him in an open-mouth kiss with a lot of tongue that was so hot, his cock started to twitch in anticipation.

House thought: _Damn, she's good. She knows just what to say to rev my engine. She's gotten me off three times in less than 24 hours and I feel like I could go again._

When they finally came up for air, House smirked: "Finish your beer and let's go. Be a good girl and I'll let you ride my stallion when we get home."

Issy smiled and downed her beer.

One part of House wanted to immediately take her home and jump her bones again. He enjoyed claiming her, possessing her. She was _his _plaything. The other part wanted to stretch out the evening to make it feel more like a date. That side of House won. He took his time riding back, relishing the feel of her body pressed up against him on the bike. They stopped at an Italian place just outside of Princeton and shared a pizza for dinner. He told her some stories of the year that his dad was stationed in Egypt and how he had spent as much time as possible searching for mummies. She listened with rapt attention for his tales fascinated her. She had never been anywhere more exotic than the Chinatown section of New York City. They laughed and enjoyed each other's company. He groped her a little bit under the table; she pretended to be shocked, and then surprised him by planting a big kiss on his lips.

Bellies full, they rode home. Issy clung tightly to him, enjoying the feel of his body and the vibrations of the powerful motorcycle. It had actually been a nice day. There had been sex in the morning, then breakfast and a few chores. Then he had taken her out and bought her such nice things to wear. Issy couldn't remember the last time someone had bought something for her. He was a bit of a show-off in the bar, but that was OK. He just wanted to show the other guys what a cute chickie he had. And this part of the evening was almost like what she imagined a real date to be. She wasn't sure, as she had never been on a real date, the kind they show in the movies, but this seemed like one of those. She could almost imagine that she was his real girlfriend, not one that he paid for by the week, like a cheap hotel room. She shook her head to get that image out of her mind. Reminding herself that she was not his real girlfriend, she vowed to continue that illusion if that's how he wanted to play it. And judging from today, he seemed to like that fantasy. It was certainly a much better fantasy than some she had been subjected to and she was more than willing to play along. She squeezed him tighter as the miles flew by.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Sunday morning was a repeat of Saturday except that this time House topped Issy and she made French toast with sausage links for breakfast. As they ate, she explained that she wanted to go to her old apartment and get the rest of her stuff.

He asked: "Can you manage by yourself? The Eagles are playing at 1PM and I don't want to miss it."

She assured him that she would be fine and got him settled in front of the TV with a beer and a bowl of potato chips. After spending the last week at Doc's apartment, her old studio looked worse than ever. She threw everything into some cardboard boxes, lugged them down the stairs and into her car. The last personal item in the apartment was her old backpack. Issy felt lucky that she hadn't had any anxiety attacks since moving in with Doc, but she knew that wouldn't last. She figured that she could keep it in her car for now, but she needed a good hiding place inside the apartment. She pondered on that as she drove back to Princeton.

Doc was enjoying the game when she walked back into the apartment. She gave him a quick kiss on the top of his head and took the box down to the bedroom. She completely unloaded the car first and then started working on putting everything away. She started with the kitchen. House didn't have very many cooking supplies, so there was plenty of room for her pots and pans. She tried to be as quiet as she could so she wouldn't disturb him. When the kitchen was completed, she took him another beer before she started on the bedroom.

On her side of the bed, there was a small amount of bare wall space next to the dresser and she stacked two of her milk crates there. Inside she put her small collection of paperbacks, CD's and her schoolbooks. On top of the crates, she placed her CD player. She hoped Doc wouldn't mind; her milk crates certainly looked tacky next to his nice furniture. He had made some space in the closet, so she hung her clothes up in there. The rest of the clothes fit into the drawer space that he had left for her. She glanced under the bed; nothing but dust bunnies, so it seemed like a good place to stash her backpack. She'd bring it in tomorrow when he was at work. Issy broke down the cardboard boxes and took them out to the recycling bin.

She joined him on the sofa. At a commercial break, he asked: "Did you get everything moved?"

"Yes, I've got all of my personal stuff here."

He nodded and resumed watching the game.

They spent the rest of the afternoon watching football and then they ordered Chinese food for dinner. When they went into the bedroom, Issy saw House raise an eyebrow when he noticed her milk crates, but he didn't make any comments about them.

House thought the milk crates looked ridiculous, but he didn't say anything about them. He didn't feel like clearing any space on his bookcases for her things; after all, this was a temporary arrangement. She'd be gone by June. No sense in making major changes for such a short period of time. He lay back on the bed and watched her strip for him. Then she crawled up the bed and took him in her mouth. When he was fully erect, he rolled her over on

her back and climbed on top. The sex was short, but mutually satisfying. After turning off the light, House spooned up against Issy and fell asleep with his hand on her breast.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

When House woke up the next morning, Issy had already left for the hospital, as per her usual weekday routine. The apartment was quiet. He yawned as he scratched his balls, his eyes slowly opening and adjusting to the light. As he was lying on his left side when he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw were the ugly milk crates that Issy used for storage. He did a quick visual scan of her things and wondered if she had a diary or any other interesting items hidden in there. There was only one way to find out, but his body had certain needs that had to take precedence. He rolled slowly out of bed and limped into the bathroom to pee. Then he wandered into the kitchen, poured himself a cup of coffee and took that and his egg sandwich back into the bedroom.

After lowering himself carefully to the floor, he began systematically going through her things. Her CD player and a small stack of CD's stood on top on the crates. He flipped through them, but found nothing interesting besides learning that her taste in music ran mostly to Clapton, Billy Joel and the Eagles. Pleased that she didn't listen to the current pop crap that was out there, he approved of her selections. He thought about introducing her to some blues artists to see what she thought of John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy and some of his other favorites.

The shelves of the crates held nursing textbooks and a lot of paperbacks that had seen better days. Each book was removed, turned upside down and shaken, pages flipped in search of any hidden secrets and then carefully replaced in its original position. He found nothing of interest until he opened a very tattered copy of '_The Phantom Tollbooth'_. Inside he found a faded snapshot of a little girl sitting on a man's lap. It must have been Christmas time as there was a large decorated tree behind them. The little girl was wearing a red velvet dress, white tights and shiny black patent leather Mary Janes; she was clutching a stuffed brown dog. House squinted at the photo and finally pulled on his reading glasses for a better look. He couldn't swear to it, but he thought that the kid could be Issy. She looked to be about four years old and bore a resemblance to the man in the photo. House wondered if the guy was her father. They had the same eyes and lips, although their noses were different. There were no other photos in the book so he replaced it back in its original spot.

He found nothing else of interest in the milk crates, so he started on the dresser drawers. Unfortunately he found nothing but clothes. As he sipped his now tepid coffee, he pondered on the interesting puzzle that she presented. Aside from that one very old photo, she had no personal effects. Why was that? There were no other family photos, no diary, no address book, although she probably had numbers in her cell phone and perhaps other information on her computer. He'd have to spend another morning examining her computer, but it was getting late and he needed to get to work. Cuddy said she was going to leave files of fellow applicants on his desk and he needed to start combing through them for potential candidates. She expected him to set up some interviews this week and he knew there would be hell to pay if he didn't at least put on a show that he was trying.

Suddenly, a smile crossed his face. _'Put on a show'_, yeah, now that was an idea. He pondered on that while he showered and got dressed. By the time he was ready to leave, the idea was firmly cemented in his mind.

He had one more thing to do before he left the apartment. It was now a week since she had come to live with him. He decided that Monday would be payday, so he removed five one hundred dollar bills from his wallet, stuffed them into an envelope and left them on her bedside table. There was no desire to personally hand her the money; that would destroy his 'girlfriend' illusions. He figured that this would be the best way to handle her weekly payments. That done, he grabbed his backpack and helmet, and headed off to work.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Just before noon, Wilson strolled into House's office. "Lunch?"

House looked up from his computer screen: "Yup, one sec." He was typing an e-mail and wanted to finish before leaving for lunch.

Wilson flopped down in the chair in front of House's desk. He noticed an open tin of cookies on House's desk and reached his hand forward to grab one. Before he could snag one, House slammed the lid down on the tin. "Mine."

"Selfish twit. Can't share just one? Where did you get them anyway? They look homemade."

"They are."

Wilson waited, but House didn't say anything more. Wilson sighed; it was going to be pulling teeth to get this out of him.

"Who made them?"

"A girl."

The light bulb went on in Wilson's head. "The girl you had the date with? How did that go?"

House smirked: "Surprised you didn't call me when you got back to hear all about it. What do you think? She's hot and she bakes cookies. Makes a great breakfast too. Her pancakes are better than yours. I think I might be in love."

Wilson's mouth fell open: "Seriously?"

House calmly finished his e-mail and hit the send button, leaving Wilson to stew for a few minutes. He straightened the stack of applicant files on his desk and then rose: "Lunch?"

Wilson fumed: "Yes, that's what I came here for, but first I want to hear about this hot girl. Did those breasts live up to your expectations? You said she makes a great breakfast, can I assume that you got lucky?"

"Yes and yes."

Wilson growled: "Sit down and tell me more."

House actually laughed out loud, but did as Wilson requested, merely because he wanted to brag about his hot 25-year-old girlfriend. "Those scrubs hide a killer body. She has the most luscious perfect breasts that I've ever had the privilege of nibbling on. She's a runner and has a fantastic pair of legs. Long, lean and muscular. They feel fabulous wrapped around my back. She has a round, perfect ass and a pouty set of lips that look sensational wrapped around my dick."

Wilson grinned: "So you got a young hottie? Way to go. Think you'll go the distance and last 6 months?"

House smirked: "I don't see why not. She's already moved in."

He stood up and headed towards the door, leaving Wilson, gasping like a dying fish at that last remark.

Wilson caught up to him at the elevator. Fortunately the car contained no other passengers and he continued to question House as they rode down.

"You're not serious? She's already moved in? But you just met her!"

House shrugged casually: "What can I say? It was instant karma."

He held up his cane like a microphone: _"What in the world you thinking of? Laughing in the face of love."_

House lowered his cane: "I'm not laughing any more. I'm screaming her name in ecstasy."

The elevator doors slid open and they turned towards the hospital cafeteria.

The look on Wilson's face told House that his friend was still in a state of shock over the news.

"So, what is this name that you scream?"

House thought of last night and cracked a smile: "Isabelle."

They got in the cafeteria line and Wilson asked: "Isabelle. Very nice. So when do I get to meet your goddess?"

"I dunno. You wanna come over for Monday Night Football? You can bring the beer. Issy will make food."

"Issy?"

House shrugged: "Yeah, it's a nickname. Isn't it obvious?"

Wilson chortled: "Does she call you Greggie?"

"No, she calls me Hot Lips, Stud Muffin, but mostly she calls me _God_, well, at least in bed, that's what she calls me."

Wilson shook his head as he reached for a tuna fish sandwich. "I have to meet this woman."

"She likes Heineken in bottles. Bring a 12-pack."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

House had already told Issy that he was certain Wilson would be coming over tonight. There was no way that Wilson would put off meeting House's new girlfriend. So they planned how the meeting should go, right down to what Issy should wear for the best impression.

When House returned to his office after lunch, he sent Issy a text message, confirming that Wilson was coming over tonight and for her to do what they had planned. Issy checked her messages at 4PM as she was walking to her car. There was only one message and it was from Greg. "Elvis will be in the house tonight." She hurried on to the car and headed to the grocery store.

Back at home with her purchases, she put the chicken wings in a large bowl, quickly whipped up some marinade and poured it over the wings. She put everything else away and went into the bedroom to change into her running clothes. She noticed the envelope on the bedside table and opened it, smiling as she realized that it was her first week's pay. She opened the bottom drawer of the nightstand and pulled out her cigar box. Inside were important papers like her birth certificate and car title; it also contained envelopes that were earmarked for specific bills: tuition, car insurance and so on. She didn't have time to figure out where this week's pay needed to go, so she just shoved the envelope into the box and replaced it in the drawer. Thirty minutes later, she was back from her run. After turning the wings in the marinade, she stripped off, took a quick shower and then pulled out the outfit that Greg had instructed her to wear.

Issy put on a blush pink cami top that had little spaghetti straps and a pair of hip-hugger lounge pants in the same color. She wore no bra and the outline of her areolas could be seen faintly through the material. If she lifted her arms even slightly, the top rode up enough to see her bare torso. House figured it was the type of outfit that a girl would wear around the house and yet it was sexy enough to make an impression on Wilson. It definitely showed off her perky breasts quite well. She inspected her toes. The polish on one toe had chipped a little bit, but a quick touch-up fixed that. A light spritz of perfume and a little mascara and she was ready to meet the Doc's best friend.

Back in the kitchen, she put an apron on over her outfit and continued with her preparations. She didn't have time to make potato salad so she had merely bought a big tub at the store. She dumped that into a bowl and poured a bag of BBQ potato chips into another bowl. The wings went into the oven to bake while she worked on the next dish. She fried up some sausage and onion and set that aside to drain. Next, she opened a can of crescent rolls and placed the dough on a baking sheet. Issy stirred some cream cheese into the sausage and onion mixture, placed it in the center of the dough and then braided the dough around it. She would pop that into the oven after the wings were done. Doc had said that Wilson liked vegetables so Issy prepared a platter of carrot and celery sticks with some southwest ranch dip. She figured that was enough snacking food to get them through the football game. If the guys were still hungry, they could order a pizza.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

House got home a little after 6PM. As usual, Issy met him at the door with a kiss. As she reached into the closet to put away his helmet and backpack, he reached around and cupped her left breast, smiling in approval at its unfettered state.

"Take off the apron. Let me see how you look."

She pulled off the apron and tossed it over the back of the couch. He gave her appearance a close scrutiny and then the left side of his mouth turned up. "Nice, babe, very nice. Wilson will definitely be impressed with you and jealous of me."

"Right where you want him, huh?"

"You got that right, now c'mere and give me a proper welcome."

She moved into his embrace and wrapped her arms around his neck. Their lips brushed together, gently at first but then harder as their passion increased. Tongues danced and hands explored. House dipped his hand inside her lounge pants and was delighted to discover that she was wearing only a G-string. He squeezed her bare ass: "Who's feeling naughty tonight, huh? Who's my naughty girl?"

She nipped his earlobe and whispered: "I'm your naughty girl. And it seems like you're feeling naughty too."

She ground her hips against his erection and House groaned. "Oh, babe."

Issy reached for his belt and started unbuckling it. "What time is Wilson getting here? Do we have time for a quickie?"

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Issy groaned: "Well, I guess that answers my question."

House could hear the disappointment in her voice and he was sure that she wasn't faking it. He slipped his hand down the front of her pants and took a quick dip in her wet slit. His thumb brushed her clit while his forefinger fucked her several times, just long enough for her to gasp with pleasure and start moving against his hand. She pouted when he removed it.

"Tease."

He chuckled: "There will be more later."

House rubbed his damp finger against her belly and then pulled his hand out of her pants. Not only did he want Wilson to get an eyeful of his gorgeous girlfriend, but he wanted to make sure he got a good whiff of her too. The scent of her musk, mixed in with the little dab of perfume that she had applied, was perfect.

There was another knock, more forceful this time, and House called out: "Just a sec."

With his hands groping her breasts, he kissed Issy again, harder than before. When he pulled away, he noted that her lips were swollen and her skin flushed. He had teased her nipples to swollen little points. Perfect. "Are you ready to meet my BFF?"

Issy licked her lips in a rather sensuous manner: "I'd rather finish what we started, but sure, why not?"

He positioned Issy slightly behind him as he opened the door. "Wilson! So nice of you to drop by."

Wilson stood there and glared at him. "You invited me, remember?"

House pressed his palm to his right cheek. "Oh, _right_, football, and you were bringing the beer."

Wilson gave him a smirk while his left hand pointed to his right where he was quite obviously holding a 12 pack of Heineken. "Are you going to let me in or are we going to just drink in the foyer?"

House swung the door open, revealing Issy's presence. "Wilson, meet Issy. James Wilson, boy wonder oncologist, may I present, Isabelle Walker, nursing student and girlfriend extraordinaire."

Right on cue, Issy blushed. House couldn't have asked for more. She held out her hand and shyly said: "Nice to meet you, Dr Wilson."

House inwardly smirked at Wilson's expression. He was clearly stunned, judging by the fact that he didn't seem to notice Issy's outstretched hand. Wilson's bulging eyes and gaping mouth told House that his BFF was taking in not only Issy's luscious good looks, but also her swollen lips and perky nipples. House made an exaggerated adjustment of his crotch and explained: "I just got home from work and we were, you know, saying hello."

"Ah. I see. Well, I could walk around the block for 30 minutes if you want."

Issy giggled: "Don't be silly. Come on in."

House smirked and stepped back, allowing Wilson to enter. The first impression went over even better than he had expected.

Issy took the beer from Wilson and headed into the kitchen. Once her back was turned, she allowed herself a grin at Wilson's reaction. Doc had definitely staged that meeting well. Doc's friend had boyish good looks and lovely brown eyes, but in her opinion, he couldn't hold a candle to Doc.

The guys settled themselves on the couch, discussing the game. It seems that they disliked both of the teams that were playing and were trying to decide which one they hated the least to root for. Issy walked back into the living room with two beers and the bowl of chips. She leaned over to set the items on the coffee table, giving the guys a great view of her cleavage. When she was in the perfect position, House chose that moment to ask her which team she preferred. She remained in that bent-over position while she thought. "Hmmmm, neither one is my favorite. I guess if I had to pick one, I'd go for the Bills."

House said: "Hmmm, the Bills, huh? What do you think, Wilson?"

He glanced at his friend and smirked inwardly at Wilson's fixed stare on Issy's décolletage. House slapped his shoulder: "Hey, stop staring at my girlfriend's tits. Those puppies are mine."

Wilson stammered: "I wasn't staring. I was thinking about the teams."

House muttered: "Yeah, right."

Issy glanced at House as she stood up and headed back to the kitchen. He turned his head away from Wilson and gave her a wink. He seemed to really be enjoying his little game.

When the wings were ready, Issy brought them out to the coffee table along with the potato salad and veggies. The sausage bread dish was baking and smelled delicious. The guys started loading their plates while Issy went back to the kitchen.

House called after her: "Hey, get a plate and park your sweet ass over here."

He gave her a meaningful look and patted the section of couch between Wilson and himself.

Issy hadn't realized that she would be expected to eat with them. She had just thought she would snack in the kitchen while they ate and watched the game. Obviously she had a lot to learn about this girlfriend thing.

She managed to recover the fumble and run with the ball. "I was just grabbing a beer. Are either of you ready for another?"

They both waggled their bottles, indicating their need, so Issy brought three beers and a plate back into the living room. House moved his long legs just enough so that she could slip past and sit in her designated spot.

Wilson accepted his fresh beer and said: "Thanks. Hey, Issy, these wings are great. And what's baking in the oven that smells so good?"

"Thank you, I'm so glad you like the wings. The next course is a braided sausage bread. I hope you'll like it."

"House said you were a great cook. I see he wasn't kidding. He was generous enough to let me have _one_ of your cookies today."

"I didn't _let_ you have it. You _swiped_ it. Those cookies are little bits of heaven and I don't intend to share."

Wilson teased: "Not even with your best friend?"

"No, I'm the biggest kid in the sandbox and I'm not sharing my cookies _or_ my toys."

House wrapped his arm around Issy and pulled her in for a kiss. While they were smooching, he peeked at Wilson who was grinning and shaking his head. House smirked to himself at how well this was going.

Thirty minutes later, while Issy was in the kitchen, House leaned over to Wilson and said softly: "We still on for the bet or are you backing out?"

He smirked: "I'm not backing out. She's a hot babe but I still think the odds are in my favor that you'll screw this up and I'll win."

House scowled: "Our first date was last Friday, September 7th, so the six months will be up March 7th. Be prepared to pay up then."

"If you can make it last that long, I'll pay up."

They both glanced into the kitchen. Issy had pulled the bread out of the oven and was rummaging around in the upper cabinets for a serving platter. Stretched up on her toes, arms above her head as she searched, her tank top rose and revealed several inches of her tantalizing torso.

Wilson let out a soft sigh: "And if you can make it last that long, you are one lucky man."

House mumbled: "Don't I know it?"

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

During commercials, Wilson got a little nosy, trying to find out more about this young woman who had hooked up with his best friend. She was actually rather skilled at sidestepping questions that she didn't want to answer by asking Wilson questions about himself. By the end of the evening, Wilson realized that he had told her a lot more about his personal life than he had learned about hers. He did find out that she was from Ohio, and that, like House, she was an only child, but nothing more.

The game turned out to be really exciting. Issy had planned to excuse herself around 10:30 and go to bed, but Dallas' quarterback had thrown two interceptions, which were returned for touchdowns in the first half, and she found herself hooked on the game. The guys' excitement was contagious and she found herself yelling at the TV along with them. Despite a fumble and another inception in the fourth quarter, Dallas managed to rally and pull off the game-winning field goal as the clock ticked down to zero.

Wilson moaned: "I can't believe Dallas pulled it out in the last second like that."

"Me either. Crap, it's midnight already. You gotta get up at 6AM, babe."

Issy groaned: "I know, but the game was too exciting. I wouldn't have been able to sleep with you guys yelling at the TV anyway."

Wilson took his cue and said goodnight. Issy made quick work of cleaning up the mess and they went to bed. Soon they were naked under the covers and picking up where they had left off when Wilson arrived. House was feeling very possessive of his plaything tonight; he climbed on top and restrained her arms above her head. She struggled a little, but he took that to be part of the game.

"Who's my naughty girl? Are you my naughty girl?"

Issy angled her hips in an effort to take him in even deeper. "Yes, I'm your naughty girl."

"You're so wet for me, so hot, and sooooo naughty. Oh, God, you feel so good."

He released her arms and lifted her left leg over his shoulder. He pumped her harder and deeper; her head was thrown back on the pillow as she voiced her excitement. "Oh, God, Doc, oh, God, that feels so good. Oh, God, oh, God, I'm gonna come."

He growled: "Come for me, baby."

She fell over the edge with a scream. Her walls tightened around his dick and he climaxed just a few strokes later.

Afterwards, she pulled off the condom and licked him clean as she usually did. He petted her hair while she did that. He didn't know why she always cleaned him afterwards, but he enjoyed it, so much so that if she stopped doing it, he would be rather disappointed.

When he was cleaned to her satisfaction, they spooned together under the covers. His breath was warm on her neck as he planted small kisses and nibbles, his right hand caressing the length of her body, finally settling over her mound. The hair was starting to grow in, it was short and stubbly right now, but she no longer looked pre-pubescent which pleased him.

He was just about to doze off when he heard Issy whisper. "Did I make you happy tonight?"

He mumbled: "You did good tonight. Wilson was very impressed with you. I think I'll keep you."

Before she could format a reply, he started snoring. Issy smiled at the sound. Doc was happy and he said he was going to keep her. The weekend and the meeting with Wilson had gone very well, better than she had expected. While she was in the kitchen, she had heard them whispering about the bet, but hadn't let on. Now that Wilson had met her, she was sure that Doc wasn't going to back out of their deal, cuz he'd lose the bet if he did. Even though it had only been a week, Issy was starting to feel more confident about living with Doc. She would know for sure by the end of the month, but the way things were looking, she'd probably feel safe enough to let her studio apartment go. As long as she could keep Doc happy, she wouldn't have to strip or get on her knees for strange men again. She could eat well, live in a nice comfortable apartment with tons of hot water and have great sex until she graduated from nursing school. Hoping that her luck would hold, she snuggled deeper into his embrace and fell asleep.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Slight spoilers for Season 4**

Chapter 12

House spent the rest of the week going through the applicant files that Cuddy had left for him. If someone piqued his interest, he sent them an e-mail to see if they were still interested in a spot on his team. If he got a reply, he instructed the applicant to meet him in PPTH's lecture hall on Monday at 1PM sharp. He figured that there was no point in getting up early just to interview new team members. By Friday afternoon, he had replies from forty potentials. The game was on.

The only person that he told about his scheme was Issy. She laughed: "You are really going to fuck with them, aren't you?"

He threw his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. "Hey, they need to have _cojones_ to work with me. I'll find out who has the right stuff. Now, you."

He tugged down the straps on her top and started nibbling on her shoulder. "You definitely have all the right stuff."

"Do I now?"

His hand slid under her top and cupped her breast. "Oh, yeah."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

They spent a relaxing weekend together. Issy spent some time on homework and housework, but they took another long bike ride on Saturday afternoon, ending up at a diner up in Clinton that House claimed had the best meatloaf around. He got the Major Meatloaf platter while Issy got the Mile-High turkey platter.

House snickered: "You'll be sorry. You'll be begging me for the meatloaf."

He did let Issy try it and she agreed that it was quite tasty, but she seemed satisfied with her plate of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. Despite a huge plate containing three slices of meatloaf over mashed potatoes, House still swiped some food from Issy's plate.

House took a different route home from the diner, enjoying the wind and the feel of Issy's body pressed up against him. His mind flipped back and forth between what he planned to do to those applicants on Monday and what he planned to do to Issy tonight.

His leg was stiff and aching when they arrived home, so he had Issy draw a hot bath and they took a nice soak. She had added some vanilla scented bubble bath; the smell was not too girly so he found it to be tolerable. While she relaxed against his chest, House played with the bubbles, painting her body with them, wiping them off and starting over again. Issy was practically purring with pleasure and he found himself enjoying the warmth and comfort of their wet bodies pressed together. When their skin was pruney from the water, they rinsed off the bubbles and got out of the tub. They dried each other off, spending a bit more time on certain areas than on others. Issy couldn't seem to get Mt Gregory dried off to her satisfaction, so she knelt down to lick off the droplets of water that clung to him. In no time, Mt Gregory was flying at full salute. As much as House loved a good blowjob, he wanted more than just a quickie tonight. He urged Issy up and they headed into the bedroom. Their lovemaking was slow and sweet, the kind of 'girlfriend' sex that House had been craving all day. He kissed and licked her from head to toe, finally settling between her legs and paying attention to the spot that needed it the most. She moaned and writhed as he took her to the edge time and time again, but never letting her fall over. Finally, when he figured that she couldn't take the pleasant torture much longer, he rolled on a condom and climbed on top of her. He rode her slowly at first, but the pleasant sensations were overwhelming and they both quickly fell over the edge into bliss.

Sunday afternoon was spent watching football with Wilson. Issy made snacks and dressed in a House-approved manner for the event. House chuckled inwardly every time he caught Wilson sneaking a peek at Issy's cleavage. He decided to put on a show for Wilson today. He showered Issy with affection; he nuzzled her neck, kissed her cheek and kept his arm wrapped around her, and her body pressed closely to his as they sat on the couch watching the game. His 'act' was not lost on Wilson.

When Issy went to the kitchen for more beer, Wilson said: "Hmm, I feel like I'm keeping you from something. Should I leave?"

House frowned: "What are you talking about? It's Sunday. We always watch football on Sunday. What else would I be doing?"

"You look like you'd rather be _doing_ your girlfriend. Honestly, House, I've never seen you so affectionate with someone. You rarely even put your arm around Stacy in front of other people."

House smirked: "What can I say? She's a little hottie and I can't keep my hands off of her."

He calls into the kitchen: "Hey, sexpot. How 'bout another beer?"

Issy yelled back: "Keep your pants on, horndog. I just need to stick the bread in the oven and I'll be right back with your beer. You need one too, Wilson?"

Wilson muttered: "Horndog?"

House smirked proudly: "Well, what can I say? Issy claims that I give her the best orgasms that she's ever had."

Wilson's mouth gaped open: "OK, that was too much information and you're _48 years old_. Are you popping Viagra or what?"

"Nope, it's all naturelle with my little sexpot there. She really knows how to get my blood pumping, if you know what I mean."

Issy walked back into the room with beers for all and that particular conversation ceased. They went back to yelling at the TV set, as the NY Giants were losing miserably to the Green Bay Packers. The score was so lopsided that House flipped over to another game.

Issy sat up straighter: "Oooo, the Bears are playing."

House chuckled: "I thought you didn't follow football. You like the Bears?"

Issy shrugged: "Well, I don't really follow them."

House persisted in his line of questioning: "But you like them?"

Issy tucked her feet up under her, effectively curling her body into a little ball. She pressed her cheek firmly against House's shoulder before answering in a tiny voice: "I used to watch them with my Daddy, when I was a little kid."

House swung around to look at her. Issy had never mentioned anything about her childhood before. He knew very little about her life before they had met and initially he had been fine with that. He figured, the less he knew, the better, since this set-up was a business arrangement, not a real relationship. The one photo that he had found had intrigued him. His interest was further piqued by this off-hand comment about her father and her use of the childish term _'Daddy'_. He tried to catch her eye, but her focus was on the TV and no amount of staring could get her to look in his direction. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Wilson staring at the two of them and House knew that he didn't want to make a big thing out of this with Wilson here.

House tossed the remote on the coffee table. "Well, we may as well watch this game. At least the Bears are winning, completely unlike the Giants."

During a commercial, Wilson was bold enough to ask what House wouldn't. "So, Issy, is your dad still a big Bears fan?"

House felt her body stiffen. "Um, no."

Wilson went on: "No? He gave up his allegiance to his team? That's unusual. Who does he root for now?"

House would have sworn that he felt a slight tremble in her body. He wondered what was going on, but he was not destined to get an immediate answer.

Fortunately for Issy, the timer on the oven went off and she was literally saved by the bell. "Oh, that's the bread, be right back."

She hurried off to the kitchen, leaving the two men exchanging glances.

Wilson asked: "Did I say something that I shouldn't have?"

House just shrugged: "She doesn't like to talk about her family. That's just one more thing we have in common, along with a love of reverse cowgirl."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "I am not dignifying that with an answer."

House grinned; that's just what he was hoping for.

The rest of the afternoon passed uneventfully. The Giants and the Jets lost, but the Bears won. The guys congratulated Issy on her team's victory, but she shyly downplayed it.

After Wilson went home, House considered asking Issy about her dad, but then decided against it. If he asked _her_, then she'd probably ask _him_ and he didn't want to go there. Best to just leave things as they were, and keep the family ghosts out of 221B Baker Street.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

By 1PM Monday, all of the fellowship applicants had assembled in the lecture hall. House could tell by the expressions on their faces that they were surprised to see a scruffy-looking man playing an electric guitar. He twanged out a few more chords and then started speaking. His voice was low and they had to strain to hear him over the guitar. "This will be the longest job interview of your life. I will test you in ways that you will often consider unfair, demeaning and illegal, and you'll often be right. Look to your left. Now, look to your right. By the end of 6 weeks, one of you will be gone, along with 28 more of you."

He blasted out another long chord. "Wear a cup."

After that brief message, House dismissed them until 8AM the next day. Not that he had any intention of showing up that early, but he wanted to be sure that they did. Several of them tried to talk to him afterwards, but he curtly sent them away. He had no interest in listening to them suck up to him in a feeble attempt to win the job. There were other ways to determine who was the best fit for this job and he had lots of games planned to find the best ones. He prepared the lecture hall with everything that he needed for tomorrow and then he headed for home.

Bruce Springsteen was jamming on the stereo when he walked in. House was surprised that Issy didn't immediately greet him at the door as she usually did. He had arrived home about a half hour earlier than usual, so at first he wondered if she was still out on her run, but then he spied her sitting on the floor in front of the TV. He tilted his head as he tried to figure out what she was doing. She seemed to be flipping through some ads and cutting out certain parts with a pair of scissors, setting each little cut section aside in one of three piles. He watched her for a moment and then he opened and loudly shut the door.

She looked up with a startled look on her face. "Oh, hi. You're home early."

Issy got up and came over to greet him. She grabbed his things, placed them in the closet and then wrapped her arms around his neck. Her lips locked with his before he could ask what she was doing over there on the floor. The kiss was slow and sensuous and he found himself getting lost in the pleasant sensation. When they finally came up for air, a glance towards the TV reminded him of his question.

He jerked his chin towards the pile on the floor. "What are you doing over there?"

Issy answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Cutting coupons from Sunday's paper."

He snorted: "Cutting coupons? What the hell for?"

She gave him a puzzled look. "To save money on groceries. It can really add up, you know. One week I saved almost eight dollars on the food bill."

He shook his head, chuckling. "Issy, you don't need to do that. I'm buying the groceries now and I have plenty of money. Don't waste your time."

"Well, I know it's _your_ money, but I don't want to be wasteful with it. If I can save you money on the groceries, that's money you can use for other things."

"Like sex toys?"

She blushed, obviously embarrassed, but then lifted her chin. "Sex toys or whatever you want."

He cupped her face and looked deeply into her eyes, wondering not for the first time, just who the hell she really was. "It's not that I don't appreciate the gesture, because I do. I've never known a woman who didn't want to just spend as much of my money as she could. You _are_ different. But seriously, don't bother. Saving eight bucks a week isn't going to make or break me. I have better things for you to do with your time."

She tilted her head at him and gave him a saucy smile. "Oh, yeah? Like what?"

"Throw all that crap away and bring a couple of beers over to the couch. I wanna tell you about what I did to the applicants today before Wilson gets here for Monday night football. I don't want him to know about it just yet, cuz I'm trying to keep it on the down-low from Cuddy."

She gathered up the pile of clippings and tossed them in the small trashcan by his desk. After grabbing two bottles of Grolsch from the refrigerator, Issy joined him on the couch, where he told her about today's happenings and gave her a preview of tomorrow.

Issy giggled at the end of the tale. "Oh, I can't wait to hear what happens tomorrow. You are going to have so much fun with this."

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House woke up earlier than usual on Tuesday morning. He was actually excited to get started with the day. He made a mental bet with himself how many of the forty applicants would be left by the end of the day. He showered, dressed and gobbled his breakfast in record time. As he headed towards the front door, he happened to glance down in the trashcan by his desk. Strange, he was sure that Issy had thrown all that coupon crap in this can last night, but now it was empty. He checked the kitchen trash to see if she had just dumped this can in the bigger can, but that was not the case. The groceries ads were nowhere to be seen. House came to the only conclusion that he could. Issy had taken the ads to finish what she had started to do, clip the coupons. He shook his head; he couldn't imagine why someone would go to that effort to save such a small amount of money, but he decided it wasn't worth nagging her about it. After all, she could be spending his money extravagantly instead of trying to save him a few cents. She still returned his change after every grocery excursion. He had probably met the only honest whore in all of New Jersey and he considered himself lucky to have hooked up with her.

House had meant to keep the applicants waiting longer, but he just couldn't wait to get started. He strode into the lecture hall at 9:08AM. Dropping his backpack on top of the desk, he took a few minutes to look around the room. Forty anxious faces stared back at him. He stared at them a while longer, wanting to heighten their anxiety levels just a bit more and then finally he spoke: "There are a lot of you here and I am not going to waste my time getting to know all of your names when I'm keeping only three of you. Everyone come on down and get a number. You'll need to wear this everyday until we get down to the final four. No, wait, that's basketball, I meant the final three."

He paused and waited; no one moved. Gruffly he said: "Well? What are you waiting for?"

There was a great clamoring as everyone hurried down to the front to grab a number. Applicants pushed and shoved, perhaps hoping that a low number would give them a better advantage than a higher number. House had made a special pair of numbers for the twin applicants in the group; they would be 15A and 15B. Otherwise it was catch-as-catch-can for getting your number assignment.

Once everyone had a number and had returned to their seats, House flicked on an overhead projector. A man's black and white photo appeared on the screen. The fun was about to begin.

When he got home that night, he eagerly told Issy all the events of the day.

"I fired one of them because she didn't recognize Buddy Ebsen."

Issy interjected: "What? She didn't recognize Jed Clampett? Did she grow up in a cave or something?"

"Or maybe a deserted island. Who knows, but she definitely wasn't right for my team. Then Cuddy the bitch walks in and tells me that I can't manage that many people so I fired a whole row. Then she told me that I was being stupid and arbitrary. There was a nice piece of eye candy in the fired row so I rehired that row and fired a different row instead, just to prove that I wasn't not being arbitrary. That didn't appease her for some reason. Then I got paged to my office and lo and behold, there was a real patient waiting for me. It was so cool. It's top secret, though, I can't tell you about it, unless you twist my arm or something."

He extended his left arm straight out in front of him. Issy took the hint, grabbed him by the forearm and twisted.

"Ow! OK, OK. Don't torture me. An astronaut trainee wants me to find out what's wrong with her before NASA does. So I presented the patient and her symptoms to the group and they called out their theories. I broke them up into small groups to run different tests, but there were 10 applicants left over with nothing to do. So I sent them to wash my car."

Issy chortled: "You didn't?"

House chuckled and said: "I sure did. It seems that eight of them didn't appreciate that little task because they walked off the job, although I believe they were egged on to leave by Number 24 who is a real cutthroat bitch. But I did get my car washed."

"Did you figure out the diagnosis yet?"

"Not yet. She has an elevated red blood count, but no clots and the rest of her labs are fine. Carbon monoxide poisoning was a possible so I told three of them to stick her in the hyperbaric chamber. She crashed while she was in there, and instead of calling a code; Idiot Number 6 decides to use the defibrillator in a highly oxygenated room. Guess what happened?"

Issy's eyes grew wide. "Oh, my God, that would be like striking a match near an oxygen tank."

House smiled with approval. "Very good, my young Jedi. Yes, the patient caught on fire. Fortunately the sprinklers came on and put out the fire. She went back into sinus rhythm; so she lived but now she has burns on her chest."

"What are you going to do to Number 6? Fire him?"

"I don't know yet. I'll see what tomorrow brings. Between firing Row C and the ones who walked off instead of washing my car, I'm down to 20 applicants."

"Found anyone interesting enough to keep yet?"

"There's this old guy who's fun, but he's not really a doctor, just plays one on TV."

"He's not a real doctor?"

"Nope, haven't figured out his story yet, so I'm gonna keep him until I do."

Issy giggled and snuggled closer to House. "You lost half of them on the first day. Can't wait to see how many are left tomorrow."

As he slid his hand up under her tank top, he concurred: "Me too, babe, me too.

There was one thing that he didn't tell Issy He thought he had seen Chase in the hall outside his office today. That was impossible since he had fired Chase three weeks ago and Wilson had told him on good authority that Chase and Cameron had moved to Arizona. So how was it possible that he had seen him? Was Chase really back or was it a hallucination? Would he be seeing Cameron next? He shuddered at the thought and then focused on the hottie sitting on the couch next to him.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

When House woke up on Wednesday morning, he decided to check out her laptop for any personal information. Unfortunately it was password protected and while he tried several possibilities, like her birthdate and 'Eric Clapton', none of them worked. Even Eric Clapton's birthdate didn't work. He didn't know enough details about her past, like dead pet names or her mother's maiden name, to try the usual passwords that most people used. He'd have to try another time after he learned more about her, or hope that one day she would forget to log off and then he could take his opportunity.

It was a very long day and he didn't get home until almost 9PM. Issy had waited dinner for him, which he appreciated, but considered to be unnecessary on her part.

"Issy, there's going to be lots of nights when I'm hung up with a patient. I may come home late, or not at all depending on the seriousness of the situation. And there is an excellent chance that I will not remember to call you and tell you what's going on. So here's the deal. If I'm not home by 8PM, go ahead and eat, make me a plate and leave it in the refrigerator so that I can heat it up when I get in. Capiche?"

"Sure, no problem. So what happened today? Did you fire anymore of them?"

Between bites of lasagna and garlic bread, House summed up today's events. "We ran a few tests which revealed nothing. Then the patient had a panic attack, pulled off all her monitor leads and led three of the kids on a merry chase to the Chapel, where she barricaded herself inside. They paged me during _'Judge Judy'_ for this."

"Those idiots! What were they thinking?"

"They are morons. Interrupting me during _'Judge Judy'_ was bad enough but we also got caught by Cuddy who now demands that I put every test on paper and send her a copy. So much for secrecy."

"Oh, that sucks. What now?"

"Well, I fired Number 10 because he was the one who ratted me out to Cuddy. And then I fired Number 6 because he was annoying me and he's also a tattletale. I thought it might be liver cancer so I consulted with Wilson to see if there were tests that I could do to prove it was cancer but that weren't _real_ tests. He, of course, would not reveal his secret oncologist tricks to me. When I walked back into the lecture hall, Number 6 had returned, but with his number upside down and claimed to be Number 9. I fired him again, but as he was walking out, he came up with an idea to stress her liver that wasn't a real test, so I let him stay."

"What did he come up with?"

"To get the patient wasted to see how her liver processes alcohol. It was a good idea. I used the non-drinking Mormon guy for a control, Number 13 was the medium drinker and I was the heavy drinker, hence the smell of tequila on my breath. I was not at a mariachi bar; I was doing my part for science."

Issy giggled: "No sacrifice too great for science."

"I'm not having any bourbon or scotch tonight; that _is_ a big sacrifice. I know from experience not to mix tequila with anything else. Brrrr."

House gave a faux shiver and continued: "The patient developed trouble breathing and I'm sure I detected small masses in her lungs during auscultatory percussion. The problem is she won't let us do a biopsy because NASA will see the surgical scar which would require some explanation on her part."

"So what are you going to do now?"

He smiled, remembering the conversation in the lecture hall. "Number 39 is a rather devious dwarf plastic surgeon. Cosmetic surgery scars would be easy to explain away and yet give us access to the area we need to get the biopsy. Tomorrow her B cups will become C cups and we will get our biopsy."

"Oh, that's brilliant."

"Yeah, not bad. So I only fired one guy today. I'll have to do better tomorrow."

"You could have them rotate your tires. I'm sure that would annoy a few of them."

He chuckled and pulled Issy onto his good leg. "Yeah, it probably would."

As they locked lips, House pondered the other events of the day. He thought he had seen Cameron while he was outside the chapel. But Cameron was supposed to be in Arizona and this Cameron look-alike was blonde, so it must have been someone that just looked like her. And walked like her. And dressed like her. He pushed that thought out of his mind only for it to be replaced by the image of seeing Foreman walking down the hall outside of the patient's room. Granted he had had five shots of tequila at that point, but it looked so much like Foreman that House had followed him. Unfortunately Cuddy had intercepted him before he could get to Foreman. After reminding House that Foreman was now working at New York Mercy, she sniffed his breath and accused him of drinking. He had limped as quickly as possible back to the patient's room. At home, he now wondered: had he seen a Cameron look-alike? Was Foreman just a tequila-induced hallucination? There had to be a reasonable explanation for these sightings. There just had to be.

The patient had surgery the next day and lung cysts were found, just as House had predicted. While challenging his team to give him the correct diagnosis, a voice called out from the viewing gallery.

"Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome."

House recognized that wombat accent and a glance up at the gallery window confirmed that it was indeed Chase, giving him the correct diagnosis. After reassuring his applicants that he was _not_ hiring the surgeon in the window, House felt somewhat relieved. At least he hadn't hallucinated Chase. A later confrontation confirmed that Wilson had known all along that Chase and Cameron had remained at PPTH and that Wilson had just been fucking with House about it. It seemed that Foreman really was at New York Mercy though, so he must have been a tequila-induced hallucination, causing House to swear off tequila for the rest of his life.

He got home at a decent hour that night. After a delicious artery-clogging dinner of fried pork chops and fried potatoes with onions, House told Issy the details of the day.

"Wow. So two members of your old team are still working at the hospital? How weird is that. And Wilson knew all this time and told you they were in Arizona. That was kinda mean."

"I'll get him back. The chocolate Ex-Lax trick will not work a third time, so I'll have to come up with something new."

Issy giggled and snuggled deeper into his embrace. "So, how many did you fire today?"

He smirked: "Nine more are out the door."

"So you have ten left? How are you going to decide among them?"

"Each one has some good qualities. I need to see who thinks outside the box and is willing to take chances to find out the answers. I may split them into teams and have them work against each other. That will bring out the ol' competitive spirit. I'll just see how the mood strikes me tomorrow. But in the meantime."

He slid his hand up her shirt. "I've got a different mood striking me right now."

Issy smiled and started unbuckling his belt. "You don't say."

He managed to mumble: "Less talk, more action," before her lips crashed down onto his.

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It had been a pleasant evening. They'd had a nice dinner and great sex. So why did Issy find herself having an anxiety attack at 2AM?

Her heart was beating so loudly that she was sure it would wake Greg, but thankfully he was snoring as usual. She kept glancing at the door, sure that any minute it would creak open, and that Frank would creep in, slip in the bed beside her and demand that she spread her legs for him.

_He's not here. He's not here. _

She repeated those words over and over again, but they failed to reassure her as usual. Her backpack was lying under the bed with the dust bunnies. Should she pull it out and go into the living room and draw for a while? She wanted to, but hated the thought that Greg might wake up and catch her at it. She didn't want him to know about her anxiety attacks. She tried to take some calming breaths, but her heart kept pounding and her eyes were drawn again and again to the bedroom door. _What was that sound? Was it a_ _floorboard creaking?_ She trembled in fear, sure that he was coming after her.

Suddenly there was a loud snort from her bed partner and a heavy arm landed across her middle. Greg made a few smacking noises and tugged her closer. He hummed, let out a sigh and then started snoring again.

Issy couldn't help but smile. Sometimes he made the funniest noises while he was sleeping. She edged closer to him and with a feather-light touch, caressed his chest. He hummed again, a small smile on his face. His scent was familiar and comforting to Issy so she edged closer still. Finally she was close enough to rest her head on his shoulder; she snaked her arm around his waist and pulled him as close to her as she could. He responded with a grunt and a possessive grip tugged her still closer to him. Her face was buried in his neck and she took a big inhale of his manly musk. With the weight of his arm resting heavily upon her waist and his comforting scent filling her nostrils, Issy's heart rate slowed and she realized that she didn't hear any more weird noises. Greg's arms were like a talisman; no one could get to her while she was in his protective embrace, not even Frank. After planting a tiny kiss on his neck, Issy let his heart beat lull her to sleep.

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The next two weeks went by quickly. House had two more cases and fired four more applicants, including Henry, the faux doctor. House had enjoyed the game with Henry, but he knew that he couldn't keep him. The remaining six were quite competitive and other hospital employees started placing bets with Chase on whom would be the next one fired. House found out that Foreman had been fired from NY Mercy for thinking outside the box, despite the fact that it saved the patient's life. He briefly wondered where Foreman would land next, but then put it out of his mind.

September rolled into October and the leaves started to fall. Issy loved running in the cool crisp air. She looked forward to when the weather turned cold enough to light a fire in the fireplace. Relaxing on the couch with Greg in front of a roaring fire sounded really nice. Issy had given up her studio apartment at the end of September. She felt that things were going well enough with Greg that she could give up her safety net. He loved her cooking, seemed to appreciate her efforts at keeping the place tidy, and the sex was fantastic. The evenings after dinner were usually spent watching TV, although he had started playing the piano a little bit too. He had seemed rather shy about playing in front of her, at first, but he had loosened up now. He didn't like being watched as he played, so she would curl up in a corner of the couch, close her eyes and just listen. It was like being at her very own private concert. If things continued like this until June, Issy was going to find it very hard to leave him. There were times when she almost forgot about their business arrangement, but then she would find the envelope containing her pay every Monday afternoon, and it would all come back to her. He was not her boyfriend, but she did enjoying pretending that he was.

Most of the time he was an easy person to live with. Issy had learned that if he had a difficult case going on that he wanted to be left alone. He needed to research his journals and think about the symptoms. Occasionally he would bounce ideas off of her, but most of the time, he wanted to be alone with his references and his thoughts. Issy would spend the evening in the bedroom, doing her homework or messing around on her laptop, checking on him once in a while and refreshing his drink if it was needed. She learned to be very quiet while he was working because he would get snappy if she disturbed him. His moods didn't bother her though because she understood that he was dealing with a very sick patient. On those nights, she often went to bed alone, but after an hour or so; he would climb in beside her, wrap his long arms around her and spoon up against her back. He'd rub his soft cock against her ass, but he didn't want sex on those nights, he just seemed to like the physical contact. Issy was always happy when he finally came to bed as she had gotten rather used to sleeping in the protective warmth of his arms.

House continued to snoop in her things but he had not had much luck. One morning, he pulled open the bottom drawer of her nightstand and found her cigar box. He thought he had really scored until he examined the contents. There were envelopes containing various amounts of cash, each one with a title and an amount written on top. He found one that said: _Car insurance,_ _$580 by Nov. 1._ Another one was marked: _Tuition, $5000.00 by Dec 31_. So this was her little banking system. He wondered if she even had a bank account. He couldn't find a passbook or a checkbook so he had to assume that she didn't. Since most of her income was under the table, it made sense not to have one. If the IRS ever checked up on her, how would she explain her illegally obtained income?

The pile of papers under the envelopes was a bit more interesting. He found her car title, car insurance papers, and college transcripts, the last of which he read closely, pleased to see that she was such a good student. At the very bottom, he felt like he had hit pay dirt. There was her birth certificate. Isabelle Caroline Walker had been born in Akron, Ohio on May 30th, 1982. He scanned for her mother's maiden name and made a disgusted sound when he saw that it was Smith. Chances were good that Issy was _not_ using that as her computer's password. House tried it anyway. He tried several combinations of her parents' names and her place and date of birth, but to no avail. He still could not hack into her laptop.

Judging from the life she lived, Issy probably didn't have any secrets. She didn't seem have any friends either. Absolutely no one called her on his apartment phone; her cell phone never rang in the evening. He had not once see her take or place a call or text. She even spent her lunch hour alone. One day, he had been out on the balcony and saw her walking towards a trio of park benches directly below his office. She selected the middle one, pulled out a sandwich and soda and proceeded to have her lunch. After that, if he happened to be in his office at noon, he would watch for her. Every time he saw her, she was eating alone on that same bench. Sometimes she read a paperback, or seemed to be studying some notes, but she was always alone. House didn't understand why she didn't have any friends; she was nice and easy to get along with. He had been concerned about living with someone again after all these years, but his concerns were unfounded as life with Issy was very relaxed.

Issy was definitely way easier to live with than Stacy had been. With Stacy, there had been arguments about him doing his share of the chores, taking out the trash and things like that. He didn't have those arguments with Issy because she did it all, efficiently and without complaint. If he asked for a beer, she ran and got him one. If he texted her and requested meatloaf for dinner, it was in the oven when he got home. If he wanted attention, or conversely if he wanted to be left alone, she obliged him. She never gripped about how much time he spent in front of the TV or on the Internet. The only time he didn't get his way was if she had a lot of homework and needed to study. He grumbled a bit to himself on those nights, but he honored their arrangements and left her in peace to study. After all, he did want his 'girlfriend' to make good grades. He knew that he became a growling bear when he had a case and she was smart enough to leave him alone on those nights and did not complain about being 'abandoned', the way that Stacy used to. House knew that there was a world of difference between Issy and Stacy and that he shouldn't make comparisons between them, but he couldn't help doing so.

The sex was fantastic. Issy was so responsive to his touch and he found her to be quite playful in bed. His sex drive was higher than it had been in ages and that included the last couple of years with Stacy. House had never been much of a cuddler in bed, but now he found it difficult to sleep if Issy was not spooned up against him. The warmth of her body and the soft roundness of her curves were delightful and he enjoyed the delicious tactile sensation of their naked bodies spooned up against each other as they headed to dreamland. He had vague worries about how he'd deal with her departure in June, but forcefully pushed those thoughts out of his head. June was a long ways off.


	14. Chapter 14

** Chapter 14**

It was a Monday night and House was channel-surfing. Issy had just finished the dinner dishes when she plopped down on the couch, arranged herself into a cross-legged seated position and looked at him until he muted the TV.

He couldn't contain the smirk as he asked: "Something you wanna talk about?"

Issy nodded: "Do you think it would be OK if we have take-out tomorrow night? I need to go to Trenton after class and I probably won't be home until 6PM."

House shrugged: "Take-out is fine. We haven't had Thai in a while. Why do you need to go to Trenton?"

"I have my every six months appointment with Planned Parenthood tomorrow. They do my exam and my blood work and then I get a six-month supply of my birth control pills. They have the cheapest birth control pills around, it's only ten bucks a pack there."

He frowned: "What kind of blood work do they do?"

She blushed a little bit. "You know. For STD's. The kind of work I do, it's sorta necessary."

He gently stroked her cheek. "You don't do that kind of work any more. Have you ever tested positive for anything?"

"I had chlamydia once, but that's it."

"You've been tested for HIV?"

"Always been negative."

"What about Hep C?"

"I don't think they test for that. Aren't they saying now that the rates of sexual transmission are fairly low?"

"Yes, that's true, but if you've ever done IV drugs."

She interrupted him: "No! Never! I've never shot up. I've watched people do that when I was hom, I mean, when I was working at one of the sleazier clubs. They would pass the needles back and forth like it was no big deal. It totally freaked me out. I swear to you, I've smoked some pot, but I've never done anything else."

"It wouldn't hurt to get tested, just in case."

"I'll ask about it, but I'm not sure they do that there."

"When was the last time you had sex with someone other than me?"

Issy looked embarrassed. "Does that include blowjobs?"

"Break it down for me."

Issy looked thoughtful. "Well, I know I did a few blowjobs after I met you. But as far as sex, hmmm, it's been a while. Maybe the beginning of the summer? I know it was a couple of months before I met you. Why?"

House touched her cheek again and then stroked her hair away from her face. "Well, I was thinking. If all your tests come out clean, and neither of us are having sex with anyone else right now, maybe we could skip the condoms. You _are_ on birth control pills. Be a little more fun for me. What do you say?"

Issy's expression grew serious. "Are _you _clean?"

House chuckled. "Good girl. That's the right answer. Yeah, I am, but I bet you'd like proof."

Issy shrugged in a casual manner: "I wouldn't mind it. When was the last time you slept with someone other than me?"

"My favorite hooker moved away a few months ago and I hadn't been with anyone else until I met you. And don't worry; I always used condoms with Paula. And I told you my last relationship ended six years ago after she carved a pound of flesh outta my leg."

House gave Issy a few moments to absorb all that and then went on. "Look, you know how to draw blood now, right?"

She nodded.

"Tell ya what. You go to Planned Parenthood and get your tests run. Tomorrow I'll bring home some tubes. You draw my blood and I'll run tests for HIV and any other STD's that you want. I'll draw your blood and test you for Hep C in case they don't do it. When the reports come back and we're both clean, would you consider riding bareback?"

Issy thought for a moment and then said: "If we're both clean, sure."

"OK, then. Thai food and bloodwork tomorrow night. We done talking?"

She nodded.

He unmuted the TV and started watching. After a moment, she moved closer to him. Without taking his eyes off the TV, he wrapped his left arm around her; she snuggled into his embrace. He rested his cheek on top of her head. They watched TV for about an hour and then headed off to bed.

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House was parked in front of the TV when Issy got home the next night. She dropped a white plastic bag onto the coffee table as she plopped down next to him. "Oh, I'm pooped. It's been a long day."

He jerked his chin towards the coffee table: "So what's in the bag?"

"Oh, pills, condoms, information on EC, the usual stuff you get at PP. Did you order dinner yet?"

"No, I was waiting for you to get home. What do you want to eat?"

They decided on dishes, and Issy ran off to take a shower and change clothes before the food came. While she was showering, House poked through the bag. He found a six-month supply of Ortho Tri-Cyclen, three boxes of Trojans and pamphlets on STD's and Emergency Contraception.

Delivery from Penang Thai Cuisine was quick tonight. The food arrived just as Issy walked back out to the living room. Over plates of ginger scallion chicken and sizzling jumbo shrimp, Issy told House about her trip to Trenton.

"They don't test for Hep C, but they took blood and swabs for everything else. I'll know the results in a week."

"That's fine. After dinner, I'll draw your blood to test for Hep C, and you can draw mine to test for the other stuff."

"Greg, how much is the blood work gonna cost me at the hospital? The only health insurance I have is the crappy student insurance and it doesn't cover much."

He waved his chopsticks at her: "Don't worry about the money. I gotcha covered."

Issy looked skeptical. "Really?"

He picked up a large shrimp with his chopsticks and offered it to her. "Yup."

She smiled her thanks and accepted the proffered shrimp.

When dinner was consumed and the dishes washed, House dragged the needed supplies out of his bag. "I got something cool to show you. Ever seen one of these?"

He held up a small white device that looked somewhat like a digital thermometer.

Issy shook her head: "I assume it's not a thermometer. What is it?"

"It's a rapid oral HIV testing device. I'm still going to have you draw my blood, but I wanted us to use this too. It's 99% accurate and only takes 20 minutes. Plus it's way cool."

He let her read the instructions and then he took the first test, running the swab across his upper and lower gums and then placing it in the bottle of developer solution. She followed suit; and then House set his watch timer for 20 minutes.

While they waited for the results, House expertly swabbed Issy's elbow with alcohol, tied it off with a tourniquet and quickly drew two tubes of blood. He set the tubes in a rack that had conveniently made its way home from the hospital and then pulled off his shirt.

Issy had drawn blood before but she didn't feel nearly as confident about doing it as House had been. Drawing _his_ blood made her feel especially nervous. He gave her instructions in a calm quiet tone and she was able to fill the three tubes without any problems.

She chuckled when she saw the names that he had written on the tubes. "Luke N. Laura? Is that your alias?"

"It is when I want to run my bloodwork and I don't want the whole hospital gossiping about me. And you're going to be."

He thought for a moment and then wrote: "Genie N. Tony. I have their soap opera names and you have their real names. Clever of me, huh?"

Issy giggled: "Not bad. I like it."

His watch timer went off and he checked the oral HIV tests. If HIV antibodies were present, there would be two reddish-purple lines in the window of the testing device. The windows were blank on both devices.

"Check it out, babe. We're both clean."

"Pretty cool. Now we just need to wait for the rest of the tests to come back."

House ran not only the Hep C test on Issy's blood, but he also ran tests for syphilis, HIV and a full blood chemistry with CBC. It's not that he didn't trust PP, but he wanted the tests back quicker than one week. He also wanted to make sure that his plaything was in good health, which is why he decided to run the other tests. Everything checked out; Issy was very healthy. His own blood work came out clean, which was no surprise to him. His other blood counts looked fine, except the liver enzymes were a little elevated. Between his Vicodin intake and his booze consumption, that was no surprise either.

He presented her with the test results that night. She seemed pleased that everything had come back negative for both of them, but still seemed hesitant about the bareback sex.

"Greg, I had swabs done for gonorrhea and chlamydia. Don't you want to wait for those results to come back too?"

"Naw, I'm not worried that you have either one of those. If you have one of them, antibiotics will take care of it."

He pulled her onto his good leg. "I want you. I want you naked and writhing beneath me, skin to skin with no latex preventing us from having complete contact."

"Well, if you're willing to take the risk."

"It's a very small risk, and yes, I'm willing."

With locked lips and roaming hands, they stumbled into the bedroom. Clothes quickly hit the floor and they tumbled into bed together. Sex with Issy had always been good, but tonight, when he slid inside of her without that layer of latex between them, it was ten times better. Not only were the sensations much more pleasant, but the absence of protection further served to enhance his 'girlfriend' fantasy. A man used condoms with hookers and one-night stands; with girlfriends, you could ride bareback. The sensations were so overwhelming that he came much quicker than he wanted to. It was fantastic but he had wanted to take her over the edge with him.

He rolled off of her and onto his back, mumbling: "Gimme a minute and I'll return the favor."

The next thing he knew, Issy's mouth was on his cock, licking him clean as usual.

He watched her for a moment and then sighed: "Damn, I love it when you do that."

After another moment, he grabbed her hips and pulled her pelvis towards him. Pushing her thighs apart, he dove between them and started lapping at her core. She moaned around his cock and he chuckled against her clit, sending lovely sensations straight to the pleasure center in her brain. He plunged two fingers inside of her and continued lapping at her clit. She thrust against him, smearing her juices across his face. Curling his fingers in just the right way, he stroked her G-spot. It only took a little more licking and sucking of her clit before she came hard, releasing a strangled cry, his semi-erect cock still in her mouth.

He gave her a moment to come down from her high and then said: "Lie on top on me, babe. I wanna feel your whole body on me."

Issy climbed on top of him, careful not to put her weight on his bad thigh, and to position his cock between the folds of her slit.

He ran his hands up and down her back: "Like that, do you? Like having my cock in between your lips?"

"I sure do. Both sets."

He chuckled and pulled her down for a kiss. He had not wiped his mouth and her juices were still smeared across the lower half of his face. She didn't seem to mind that however, judging by the enthusiastic kiss that she gave him. He liked that she didn't mind the taste of her own fluids; Stacy would never suck his cock after he had been inside of her until he had washed off, claiming that she didn't like the taste. Running to the bathroom to clean up kinda ruined the moment for Round Two as far as he was concerned. Tasting her own body fluids did not seem to be a problem for Issy. She was planting little kisses all over his face, including the sticky parts. There was a gentle motion to her hips, causing his dick to slide up and down against her wet slit. He groaned at the sensation and felt himself harden again. Round Two coming up. Not bad for a 48-year-old man.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

As House had predicted, all of Issy's test results came back negative. She felt relieved. Even though he had been willing to take the risk, she would have felt terrible if she had given him an STD, so she was very happy to receive a clean bill of health.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

A few days later, House slammed home in a really foul mood. Issy had never seen him this pissed off. When she tried to take his things, he just shrugged her off and threw them into the closet himself. He went straight to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a shot of bourbon. After downing that in one gulp, he poured another and took it back to the couch. The tension radiated off of him like the rays off of a child's drawing of the sun.

Issy was frightened. She was pretty sure that he wasn't upset at her, but she didn't know what to do. Should she leave him alone and just continue preparing dinner? Should she try to give him a little comfort? When he was in a mood, he generally preferred to be left alone, but tonight he seemed beyond the usual Dr. Crabbypants. It seemed like more than just a patient that refused to be diagnosed. Issy's mind spun with a dozen possibilities of what could be wrong.

Finally she put both hands on his shoulders and gave them a little squeeze. His muscles were really tense and she massaged them for a moment. Then she kissed the top of his head and whispered: "Got meatloaf for dinner."

He nodded and drained his bourbon. Issy took the glass and poured him a refill. She set it within reach and then went back to the kitchen to finish the dinner preparations. All she could do was hope that the message had been conveyed, that she was here if he needed her.

While mashing the potatoes, she watched him out of the corner of her eye. He never put the TV on, just sipped his bourbon and stared at the blank screen. Finally, he got up and limped slowly over to the bookcase and started rummaging though his journals. He selected two and bought them back to the couch.

Issy breathed a sight of relief. It was just a case, after all. Obviously a really difficult one, but at least he wasn't mad at her. When dinner was ready, she plated it and took it out to the living room.

In a quiet voice, she said: "Dinner's ready."

She set his plate down on the coffee table and started eating. House mindlessly forked the food into his mouth while he continued reading the journal. When his fork scraped the empty plate, Issy refilled it with another portion. He ate his second serving as mindlessly as the first. It was as if he wasn't really tasting it, which was too bad as he always raved about her meatloaf.

When the second plateful was eaten, he tossed the fork down and drained the remainder of his bourbon. He leaned back against the couch with a deep sigh and continued reading. Issy poured him another shot of bourbon and took the plates into the kitchen.

After wrapping up the leftovers and washing the dishes, she glanced back into the living room and was surprised to see him staring at her. He tilted his head and patted the couch cushion next to him. She sat next to him and he put his arm around her.

"I didn't get my kiss tonight."

Issy wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her lips against his. "It's right here."

He sighed, pulled her into a tight possessive embrace and crashed his lips down on hers. His tongue demanded entrance; she parted her lips to allow it. Their lip lock was hard and passionate. House gripped the back of her head and pressed her even closer to him. Her fingers stroked the back of his neck and tangled in his hair. He made no moves to squeeze her breast or grab her ass, just kept her pressed as closely as possible to his body.

Issy gasped when they finally broke for air. House's breathing was just as ragged as her. Finally when he had caught his breath, he said: "Remember I told you about Foreman? The one who quit because he didn't want to end up like me?"

Issy nodded.

"Well, his new boss fired him for taking an unorthodox approach to diagnosing his patient, even though it saved the patient's life. Now he can't find another job because apparently too much of _me_ has rubbed off on him."

He took a deep breath: "So Cuddy has hired him back to work on my team. The son-of-a-bitch starts tomorrow."

Issy's mouth dropped open. "She hired him back without clearing it with you?"

"Yep. She seems to think I need a keeper. She wants someone who will run to Mommy and tattle every time I want to do something the teensiest bit radical."

"But it's _your_ department. How can she hire someone that you don't want? Are you still going to be able to pick three of the current applicants for your team or are you reduced to only two now?"

He shook his head: "I don't know. I was too mad to ask. It's like she's taken a scalpel to my balls."

_So that's why he's so pissed off. Cuddy is screwing him over._

Issy ran her hand up his inner thigh. "You've still got your balls, big guy. She was the one roughing the passer but _you_ got the fifteen-yard penalty. You'll get her on the next play."

He let out a slight chuckle. "Maybe you should leave the sports metaphors to me."

She gave him a wry smile. "You're probably right."

His right hand cupped her cheek. The longing in his eyes seemed unbearable. "I need you."

Issy pressed her hand to his chest. "I'm right here. How can I make you happy tonight?"

His hand covered hers. "I'm not sure that I can reach _'happy'_ tonight, but if you wear that little nurse's outfit for me, I think I can be not _completely_ miserable."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Sure enough, the next morning, just as the applicants were shouting out possible theories about the patient's condition, Cuddy and Foreman walked into the lecture hall.

Foreman called out a theory of his own. "Laryngospasm."

House snarled: "Thanks for playing. You can go now."

Cuddy replied: "Have you forgotten yesterday's conversation? I just rehired him for your team. Everyone, this is Dr. Foreman, he will."

House interrupted: "My team, my players. Foreman, you're fired, to infinity and beyond."

Cuddy gave House the death stare. "Dr. Foreman stays. He will be my eyes and ears in this department. You do nothing without his knowledge."

Cut-Throat Bitch interrupted: "Does this mean that there's one less slot for us?"

Six heads spun and looked at House. As he was wondering the same thing, he stared at Cuddy until she finally answered.

"Foreman stays. As for the others, you decide who stays and who goes."

House snarled: "And just in case I need them, where exactly will Foreman be keeping my balls?"

Cuddy merely smiled her answer, turned and stalked out of the room. House scowled and sent the kids off to run the first series on tests on the patient.

The patient had been mugged; he had turned up in the ER with no ID and no idea who he was. Despite House's theory that everyone lies, a patient history is a handy place to start, as there is usually a nugget or two of truth in it. He did have a set of keys though, so Cole and Thirteen went off to try to locate his car, hoping that there might be some identification in it.

It didn't take long for House to realize that the patient had mirror syndrome, which meant that he adopted the mannerisms of whoever was nearby. While his team stayed busy trying to figure out what was causing the symptoms, House had a bit of fun, poking jabs at Foreman for coming back to PPTH and watching the patient mimic Wilson and members of his team. He also tried to think of ways to get Foreman to quit. Making him extremely miserable seemed the best bet, but House needed to figure out exactly how to do that.

Cole and Thirteen were having trouble accessing the car and the patient's symptoms kept getting worse despite treatment. The day dragged on. Around 6PM, House stepped out on his balcony to make a call.

Issy answered on the second ring: "Hey, you. What's up?"

"Got a crazy case here, babe. It looks like a long night. Don't wait up."

"Rats! And I made pot roast too."

House groaned. "Leave me a plate, OK?"

"You bet."

House grimaced. He usually didn't mind staying late to work on an interesting case, but tonight for some reason, he wanted to be home, getting his nightly kiss and grope at the door, pressing his urgent need against her willing hips. Not wanting to break the connection just yet, he asked: "So, what are you going to do tonight?"

"I've got a paper to write. It's not due until next week, but I could get a good start on it tonight. And I'll probably clean the bathroom. It will be one less thing to do this weekend."

"Good. Then you can devote your full attention to me this weekend. After pulling an all-nighter, I'll need a little something something special."

"Hmmmm. You could be the traffic cop who pulls me over for speeding and then has to frisk me in case I have a weapon?"

House felt a twitch in his groin from her words. "I might have to hand cuff you to keep you from escaping."

Her voice was low and sultry. "You just might."

There was a noise behind him. Brennan and Foreman had walked into his office. "Gotta go do that doctor thing now, babe. Keep my side warm for me."

"You got it, Doc."

He closed his phone and walked back into his office.

Brennan and Foreman had the results from the blood titers, but it still left them with too many possibilities. House decided to induce a high fever to keep the patient's blood flowing, but while the patient was cooking in the hot tub, he went into cardiac arrest. Kutner put the paddles to the patient before he was fully dried off and nearly electrocuted himself.

After reviving both the patient and Kutner, the team convened in the lecture hall to run the DDX again. House wanted to run the blood cultures yet again while Foreman preferred doing a biopsy of his heart, suggesting that the cardiac arrest signified that the infection was there. House told him to run the biopsy, but before he had a chance to do it, Cole and Thirteen finally returned from the car hunt with a small box containing the patient's personal belongings.

House grumbled: "'Bout damn time. Can't believe it took you 10 hours to find one car."

He sifted through the box and found vapor rub and restaurant receipts. At least they had his name now, but not much else and it was too late at night to try to find the guy's own doctor back in Ohio. After deciding to put the patient back in the hot tub to raise his temperature, Kutner said: "He'll be happy. He likes hot tubs."

House snarked: "No, _you_ like hot tubs."

Kutner shook his head. "I hate hot tubs."

House did a double take: "_You_ hate them, but _he_ said he likes them? He had an original thought and you didn't think to mention that."

Kutner shrugged: "He likes warm swirling water. I didn't think that was diagnostically significant."

"Not the water, you idiot. The thought. We need to splash him again."

By dressing up in the patient's clothes and pretending to be the man's mirror image, House was able to elicit enough information to determine that the patient sold farm equipment and had been exposed to eperythrozoonosis infection on a pig farm. The treatment was a simple course of antibiotics.

Before staring the treatment, Foreman wanted to perform a little experiment. He got House and Cuddy together in the patient's room to see whom the patient would mirror. Despite being House's boss, it turned out that Cuddy was _not _the alpha dog after all. With Wilson and his team watching through the glass, House did a celebratory jig.

House headed home in a fairly decent mood. The case was solved and he had proven to Cuddy that he was the top dog. He had a hot woman sleeping in his bed and there was a plate of pot roast in the refrigerator with his name on it. Now, if he could just figure out how to get Foreman to quit.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Issy had left the kitchen light on for him. He appreciated her thoughtfulness as he reached into the refrigerator for the plate. Two minutes in the microwave and dinner was ready. Five minutes later and he was licking the gravy residue off of his fork. He sighed with the contentment of a full belly as he sipped a bourbon and channel-surfed around the stations. As usual, there was nothing on, so after finishing his bourbon, he decided to head to bed.

She'd left the hall light on for him too. When he reached the bedroom door, he had to suppress a chuckle at the sight of Issy sprawled across the bed, apparently doing her best to keep both sides of the bed warm, head resting on one pillow and her arms wrapped around the other one. After brushing his teeth and stripping off in the bathroom, he turned off the hall light and fumbled his way to bed in the darkness. He sat on the edge of the bed and gently tried to extract his pillow from her arms. Issy frowned in her sleep and hugged it closer. House really didn't want to wake her but wondered if he had a choice considering how much of the bed she was taking up.

He gave her a little nudge, but she didn't move. So he gave her a harder push and whispered in her ear: "Move over and let me in. Come on, let me in."

He didn't expect her reaction. She cried out and moved away from him so quickly that she hit the headboard with a loud thud. Her words came out as a whimper: "No, don't. Please don't."

He stretched out full length in the bed and reached out to her. "Shhhh. It's me, not the boogey man. C'mere and warm me up."

There was a hitch in her voice. "Doc?"

"Yeah, babe, who else?"

Issy snuggled closer to him and took a big whiff; it was his scent. It was his voice. It was Doc crawling into bed with her, not Frank as she initially feared when her sleep was disturbed.

She buried her face in his shoulder and murmured: "Nobody else, Doc."

"Did I scare you?"

Issy snaked her arm around his waist. "Just a little. I'm OK now. Did ya figure it out?"

"Yup, diagnosed the patient, knocked Cuddy down a notch or two, but I'm still stuck with Foreman. I guess two outta three ain't bad."

A small giggle reached his ear. "You really like meatloaf, doncha ya?"

It took House's tired brain a moment to make the connection, but when he did, he laughed. "Clever girl, but I prefer _'Paradise by the Dashboard_ _Light'_."

Her lips gently brushed his: "It's cold and lonely in the deep, dark night."

He hugged her body closer to his. "Not anymore, babe."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

_Wednesday afternoon_

House was not fond of surprises. He liked to remain in control of the situation at hand and surprises could throw that completely out of kilter. And the surprise that showed up in his office at 3:30 that afternoon had all the elements for disaster.

The patient with mirror syndrome was responding well to the treatment, so he sent half of the team to the ER to look for a new patient and the other half to do his clinic hours. Wilson had stopped by to shoot the breeze after finishing up with his last patient. They shared another laugh about the previous night and Cuddy's realization that she was not the alpha dog.

As it was too early to go home for the day, they needed to find something else to do to occupy their time. Too lazy to head to the lounge and the foosball table, Wilson came up with another idea.

After fashioning a small paper football, they tried to flick 'field goals' through each other's 'goal post' fingers. Wilson had just scored when the unexpected guests arrived.

"Surprise!"

House looked up; Wilson spun around. Both men were surprised to see these particular people, but for House, the unexpected arrival of his parents meant only one thing: a long painful evening was ahead.

He carefully put on a slightly surprised expression as he walked around the desk to greet them: "Mom, Dad. What are you doing here? I thought you were in Germany."

His dad huffed: "We were there for two weeks. Time to come home."

His mother pulled him into a hug: "Didn't you get my e-mail, dear? I told you we had a long layover on the way back and we would drop by to take you out to dinner."

House gave her a one-armed hug: "Darn, Mom, I didn't see it. I have this new security filter on my e-mail and it must have blocked it."

"Well, we are here now and we certainly hope you are not too busy _this_ time to come out to dinner with us. You too, James. It's always wonderful to see you."

Wilson looked pleased: "Thanks, Blythe. I'd love too. It's always great to see you and the Colonel again. I'm sure Issy will be thrilled to meet you too."

House shot him a deadly look. Wilson may be his best friend, but he came from a TV sitcom type family and didn't understand what it was like to grow up in the home of a domineering, my-way-or-the-highway kind of dad. That little tidbit of information did not need to be shared with his parents.

Naturally, his mother picked up on the name. "Issy? Who's Issy?"

House could tell that Wilson was totally messing with him by the faux surprised look that was directed at his parents. "He hasn't told you about Issy? His new girlfriend?"

Blythe's eyes lit up. "Greg, you have a new girlfriend? Why didn't you tell us, dear?"

John rolled his eyes. "There must be something wrong with her if he hasn't mentioned her to us."

_Yeah, like I tell you everything that goes on in my life. What for? To give you another reason to belittle me? I'm not an idiot._

House put on a neutral expression and said: "I didn't tell you because it is a recent development and you have been in Europe for the past two weeks."

Wilson smirked: "Yeah, but she's been living with you for the last month."

John's jaw dropped. "She's already moved in? Well that was fast, but I guess at your age and with your condition, you can't be too fussy, can you?"

House's grip on his cane tightened. He fantasized about knocking his dad over the head with his cane and then throwing him through his office window.

Blythe admonished: "John. I'm sure she's a very nice girl. You said her name is Issy?"

House took a deep breath before answering: "Her name is Isabelle and I call her Issy for short."

Always agreeable, his mother said: "Isabelle is a very nice name. How did you meet her, dear? Does she work here?"

House briefly closed his eyes, uncomfortable with the line of questioning. "Kinda. She's a nursing student here. That's how I met her."

John snorted: "A nursing student? Sounds like you found yourself a young filly, son. I guess the women your age aren't willing to put up with all your crap."

"_John!"_

House knew that a mere admonishment from her mother would do nothing to stop his father's mouth. He glanced at Wilson, who was clearly uncomfortable with this exchange and silently pleaded with him to change the subject.

Obviously Wilson needed to expand his silent vocabulary. He just went right on talking about Issy. "Oh, I think you'll really like Issy. She's great. She's smart, pretty, a great cook. She likes football and doesn't put up with any crap from your son."

John muttered just loud enough for everyone to hear: "Can't imagine why a pretty young girl would put up with his crap at all. There must be something wrong with her."

As usual, his mother tried to keep the peace. "So, she's a good cook?"

"Yeah, Mom, she's a great cook. And her cookies are out of this world."

"She makes cookies from scratch?"

He nodded, trying to think of what else to say. But he knew that no matter how many positive things he would say about Issy, his father would find reasons to belittle every one of them.

John rolled his eyes. "So, I'm thinking steak for dinner. Those Germans just can't cook a really good steak the way we can. The sausages and Wiener schnitzel are great, but I've had a hankering for a big juicy sirloin for the last several days now. So, what do you think?"

House nodded: "Steak would be fine, Dad."

"What time will your little _girlfriend_ be able to join us?"

House glanced at his watch and tried desperately to think of an excuse why Issy couldn't join them tonight, but Wilson destroyed that illusion. "She should be about finished now, doncha think, House? Isn't she usually done by 4:00?"

House gritted his teeth. "Uh, yeah. That's usually the end of her day. She's in her scrubs, though. I'm sure she'll want to go home and change before we go anywhere."

"Well, don't you think you should call her before she starts cooking dinner and let her know about the change in plans for tonight?"

"Good idea. Hey, speaking of good ideas, why don't you take my parents down to the cafeteria for a cup of coffee while I try to connect with Issy? I'm sure they could use a cup after their long flight and I actually need to make a couple of calls before I leave tonight."

That last bit was a lie, but they didn't know that. He knew his dad would never turn down a cup of joe and for once his suggestion was taken. After confirming that House would meet them down there after he finished his calls, they walked with Wilson over to his office so that Wilson could grab his things before they all headed down to the cafeteria.

Once they were out of his office, House let out a huge sigh and speed-dialed Issy.

Her sweet voice cheered him, but only for a split second. "Hey. How are you?"

He answered grimly. "Been much better. Where are you?"

"I was just about to get on the elevator to head out. Why?"

"Make a detour to my office. It's better if I tell you this in person."

Her tone sounded concerned: "OK. I'll be right there."

Issy hurried to his office, worried about this situation. They didn't usually interact at the hospital, preferring to keep their relationship on the down-low, so the fact that he wanted to see her in his office was the cause of great concern. She took the stairs rather than wait for the slow-moving elevators.

The atmosphere was tense when she walked into his office. He was leaning against the front of his desk, head down, as he rhythmically tapped his cane against the floor.

She let the door close behind her and waited for him to speak. Finally he mumbled: "Houston, we have a problem."

Issy felt the panic building up in her. What had happened? Had someone found out her secret? Was she going to get thrown out of the nursing program? Was Doc in trouble for having a relationship with a student?

"What is it, Doc?"

She steeled herself for the answer.

"My parents are here."

Relief washed over Issy. She didn't know anything about his parents except that since he never talked about them, she had assumed that they didn't get along. He sounded extremely distressed that they were here. But as far as she was concerned, dealing with a tense family evening sure beat getting thrown out of school.

"They're here?"

He nodded: "In the cafeteria with Wilson at the moment. They had a long layover at the airport and came to take us to dinner."

"Us?"

"I wanted to try to keep you out of this, but Wilson spilled the beans and told them that I have a girlfriend. So, of course, you have to come along. All three of us are invited out to a steak dinner with my parental units."

Issy wasn't quite sure what he was so concerned about, and hoped he would tell her without her having to ask. "OK. Hmm, I guess we just give them the same story we gave Wilson, right? About how we met?"

"Yeah, Wilson already gave them the gist of it, but Mom will expect details."

She nodded: "OK. I can do that."

The room was silent. Issy tried to wait him out, but was too antsy to wait more than a few minutes. "Greg, do I have time to go home and change first?"

"We'll make time. I don't want him picking on your clothes all night."

"What?"

He finally looked her in the eyes. "Issy, my dad is mean. Really mean. He is going to be sarcastic, belittling and downright nasty over dinner. He's already made a crack about the wide gap in our ages and I'm sure he's just getting warmed up. He thinks there must be something wrong with you because you're involved with me."

Issy was confused. "But. You're so smart, so talented; you're a doctor, a famous doctor. How can he think?"

He interrupted her: "He just does. And it got worse after the thing with my leg. In his eyes, I'll never be good enough and thus, neither will you or any other woman that I happened to be involved with. He needled Stacy all the time, and despite being a lawyer and loving a good fight, she refused to engage in verbal combat with him. She said it would be like wrestling a pig."

She could hear the torment in his words. "You both get dirty and the pig likes it. I get it, Doc. Keep the gloves under the table. Feint and weave, but no actual hitting."

He gave her an unenthusiastic smirk: "Your sports metaphors are getting better."

She smiled: "I've learned a lot from you."

Issy took a few steps forward and grabbed his free hand. She gave it a quick squeeze and then released it. "We'll show him. I'm going home and getting dressed. He'll see what a hot babe you can attract."

His eyes pleaded: "Issy, not too sexy. You can't look like, well, how you look when Wilson comes over."

She gave him a confident smile. "Don't worry. I won't look like a slut. I'll be the kinda girl you could take home to Mama. Just give me a half hour."

He nodded. "I'll send them on to the restaurant and come pick you up."

"See you in 30, Doc."

Issy had two decent outfits, the ones that she thought of as her job interview clothes. One was a short-sleeved plum-colored knit dress with a thin black belt; the other was a black suit jacket and pants that she wore with a cream colored long-sleeved blouse. She had a pair of two-inch conservative black heels that could be worn with either outfit and if the weather were cool, the jacket would work over the dress. She had gotten the entire ensemble at a going-out-of-business sale at a Trenton boutique. Both outfits were Ralph Lauren, a fact that she was especially proud of. They weren't cheap knock-offs; they were the real thing. When she wore them, she felt very classy and that was just the look that she wanted for this dinner with Greg's parents.

As she hurried home, she debated which outfit that she should wear. By the time she hit the front door, the dress with the jacket had won. Quickly she showered and styled her hair. By the time Greg arrived, she was dressed and putting on a light layer of mascara for the finishing touch.

His eyes popped when he saw her. "Wow. You clean up really well and _still _manage to look completely hot."

She did a quick spin so that he could see the entire look. "Is this outfit OK for meeting your parents?"

His eyes ran up and down her body. "Absolutely. You look so good that I think I'll even change my shirt for the occasion."

He pulled off his shirts, applied some fresh deodorant and put on his button-down sky blue shirt. He brushed his hair and applied a dab of aftershave.

When he was finished, he asked: "Passable?"

She gave him a big smile: "You look great."

He picked up her hand and brought it to his lips. He kissed it gently and held it against his cheek for a minute. "Not nearly as good as you do, babe. You ready for this?"

"I've girded my loins."

He laughed and held out his arm: "I'll help you with your loins later. Let's just get through dinner first."

She took his arm. "To the mattresses."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

On the drive over to the steakhouse, House coached Issy on how to handle his parents. He knew it wouldn't completely get rid of the verbal abuse to come, but he hoped it might lessen the blow.

When they arrived at Ruth's Chris Steak House, Wilson and his parents were already seated and his dad was already working on a shrimp cocktail. House considered it rude that they had not waited for Issy and himself to arrive, but he kept his mouth shut.

The men stood when they approached the table. It had been a long time since House had made a formal introduction, but years of training had made an indelible impression on his brain. "Mom, Dad, may I present my girlfriend, Isabelle Walker. Issy, these are my parents, Colonel and Mrs. House."

Issy wasn't sure whose hand she was supposed to shake first, so she decided ladies first seemed appropriate. Extending her hand to Mrs. House, she said politely: "Mrs. House, it's very nice to meet you."

Mom had a frozen smile on her face. "It's lovely to meet you too, dear."

They shook hands briefly and then Issy turned to House's dad. Extending her hand, she said: "Colonel, it's very nice to meet you."

John House stared at her hand for a moment as if it were something repulsive. Knowing it would be the height of rudeness to refuse to shake her hand, he finally extended his hand and gave her a very firm handshake. "Well, I see my son has found himself quite a pretty _young_ lady."

Issy blushed, taking the complement at face value. "Thank you, sir."

As Issy turned to greet Wilson, House inwardly seethed. His dad was already starting his little tricks. House had seen the hesitation before shaking hands and heard the emphasis on the word 'young'. It was only a matter of time before the gloves came off. He badly needed a drink, but unless his Dad started drinking first, it would just be more fuel to the fire for his Dad.

At least House was able to arrange the seating so that Issy was sitting between himself and Wilson. He felt she was just a little bit safer there. House helped her with her chair and then seated himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Issy taking in the restaurant and he wondered if she had ever been in such a fancy place before. The waiter appeared, handed out menus and asked for their drink selections.

Issy felt completely out of her element. This was a very fancy restaurant and there were so many utensils. Which fork were you supposed to use first? She'd have to watch the others and mimic them. Suddenly she felt very nervous, sure she would do something wrong and embarrass Greg in front of his parents. The waiter handed her a menu and gave her a nice smile. "What would you like to drink, Miss?"

Issy really wanted a scotch. A double would be nice. She glanced at Greg to see if he could give her a hint if that was OK to order.

He gave her a small smile: "They have a really nice Australian Shiraz here. How does that sound?"

She nodded, although she didn't know what a Shiraz was. Greg ordered a glass for each of them and Wilson echoed that order.

The waiter informed them that since they all wanted the same wine, they should just order the bottle. Wilson nodded and the waiter hurried off to get their wine.

The Colonel frowned: "Australian? American wine not good enough for your delicate taste buds?"

House shrugged and said casually: "I just really like the taste of this one."

The tension was thick and they hadn't even ordered yet. House sighed inwardly; this was going to be a long evening.

Issy buried her nose in the menu. She wasn't sure what to order. All the entrées were so expensive and everything was extra. It didn't even come with a potato. What kind of crazy restaurant was this? She didn't want to seem crass by ordering something expensive, so she decided to look for the cheapest dish on the menu. That seemed safe.

Greg leaned over and asked softly: "See anything you like?"

"Well, everything looks good, but I thought maybe I would just get the chicken."

House knew what she was doing. He had to smile; she was so unlike any woman he had ever known. Any other woman would have ordered the most expensive thing on the menu or at least ordered the entrée that she really wanted. Only Issy would go for the cheapest thing on the menu.

"Nah, Issy, when you're here, you gotta have steak. The portions are very large, though. How about this? I'll order us the porterhouse for two and we'll share the shoestring potatoes. And a Caesar salad for starters."

She smiled gratefully. "That sounds great."

John House had eavesdropped on their conversation. "Never been to Ruth's Chris before? Hasn't my son brought you here yet?"

Issy smiled and shook her head.

"Greg, you've been remiss not bringing your girlfriend to this nice restaurant."

House managed to resist rolling his eyes in disgust. "We haven't dated long enough to hit _all_ the restaurants in Princeton yet."

Silently he cursed himself when he realized that he had just handed a stick of dynamite to his dad.

John snorted: "You haven't dated long enough to hit all the restaurants yet, but long enough to move in together? That's a pip. Hey, Issy, have you ever heard the story about the man who gets the milk without buying the cow? He never ends up buying the cow because there's no point. He's gotten the milk for free."

He was the only one laughing at his joke. Mrs. House and Wilson looked embarrassed, while Issy was mortified. Five minutes with Greg's dad and he was already making references that she was a slut just because she was living with Greg. A quick glance at Greg's face told her that his anger was seething beneath the surface. His jaw was clenched and his eyes were blazing. She looked down at her plate, uncertain of what to say or do.

Fortunately the waiter arrived with the wine. He poured a small amount into Wilson's glass and when he nodded approval, the waiter proceeded to fill their glasses. Issy waited for Greg to pick his up before she followed suit. He took a big gulp while she went for a hesitant sip. She decided that she liked the taste, so she took a bigger swallow.

Greg leaned closer to her: "You like it? You can order something else if you don't."

Issy gave him a small smile. "I like it. It has a nice flavor."

John smirked: "Hey, waiter, did you check her ID? I'm not sure she's old enough to drink."

Issy frowned. She knew that Greg had warned her about his meanness but was he ever going to let up? Was the whole night going to be like this?

In a light tone, she said: "Were you just fishing to find out my age, Colonel? In case you really need to know, I'm twenty-five so I am of legal drinking age."

John snorted and started to say something else, but the waiter interrupted him with a request for his order. While his dad was distracted with the waiter, House leaned over and whispered in Issy's ear: "Pigs in mud. Don't engage."

Issy nodded: "I'll try." She silently vowed to herself to not let him get to her.

Everyone placed their order and then there was an uncomfortable silence at the table. Wilson jumped into the breech: "So, tell us all about your trip."

Mrs. House launched into a long tale of their travels in Germany. Issy listened with rapt interest. It all seemed so exciting, but Issy was especially fascinated with King Ludwig's castle outside of Munich. It sounded so grand. She'd had to google it when they got home so she could see if the pictures in her mind matched up with reality. She was just thinking that it might be fun to draw the castle too, when the Colonel addressed a question at her.

"So, Issy? Ever been to Europe?"

"Oh, no, sir. Not yet. I'd like to go one day though."

"Well, don't get up your hopes that Greg will take you there. He hates to travel."

Issy didn't know how to respond to that so she just picked up her glass and took another sip of wine. Fortunately the salads arrived and everyone got busy eating. Issy hesitated just long enough to see which fork that Mrs. House picked up and followed suit.

The Caesar salad was delicious except for the anchovies. Issy found them to be too salty for her taste and edged them to the side of her plate. House speared one with his fork and said: "Can't let a good anchovy go to waste."

Issy smiled at him, but the Colonel rolled his eyes.

"She's got you right where she wants you, doesn't she? Eating out of her hand?"

"I'm eating the anchovies off of her plate, Dad. They're not in her hand."

"You know what I mean."

Greg shook his head. "No, I really don't."

The Colonel opened his mouth to say more, but Mrs. House jumped in. "So, Issy, Greg tells us that you are in nursing school."

Issy replied politely: "That's right, Mrs. House. I'm in my last year. I'll graduate in June."

"That's lovely, dear. I bet you're looking forward to that."

"Oh, yes, ma'am. It's been a long journey and I'm looking forward to the finish line and getting a job as a nurse."

"Is there a certain area that you are planning to specialize in?"

Before Issy could answer Mrs. House's question, the Colonel jumped in. "Looking forward to working? As a nurse? That's a shit job and I'm sure my son would tell you that. How can you possibly be looking forward to that?"

His eyes narrowed: "By the way, how are you supporting yourself now? Do you have a job or are you just mooching off my son?"

Issy grew indignant. "I'm not mooching off of anyone. I worked two jobs over the summer while I was out of school and saved most of my earnings. I also have a student loan and a small scholarship."

"Two jobs, huh? Did you mooch off of two other doctors or what?"

Issy's jaw dropped in shock. Greg was right; his dad was really nasty. Naturally Issy couldn't tell him exactly what she had been doing to earn a living so she dug up a couple of past jobs. "During the day, I cleaned houses and I had a waitress job in the evenings."

"Bet that paid a lot. _Not!_ No wonder you hooked up with my son. I guess he's providing you with free room and board while you provide him with whatever."

He looked her up and down disdainfully.

Mrs. House piped in: "Two jobs, dear? My, that's a lot."

Issy chose to address Greg's mother. "It wasn't that bad, Mrs. House. And I'm not afraid of hard work."

The Colonel said in a nasty tone: "And now you're working hard to catch you a rich doctor."

That was Ashley and Amy's sole purpose in attending nursing school, but the idea was not even on Issy's radar. All she wanted was a decent job, a dog and a small home that she could call her own. Where did Greg's dad get these crazy ideas about her? She frowned: "A rich doctor? What are you talking about?"

He pointed his finger at House. "My son. Or is there another rich doctor that you're after?"

Issy was puzzled; was Greg rich? Sure he had plenty of money, after all he was a doctor, but she never thought of him as being _rich_. If he were rich, why did he live in such a small apartment and drive that old beat-up car?

She looked at Greg; his eyes were gentle with her, but his jaw was still clenched. She didn't mean to say it but the words popped out. "You're rich?"

His dad laughed at Issy's naïve comment, but House paid him no mind as he gently explained to her. "No, sweetheart, I'm not rich. Some people seem to think _all_ doctors are rich, but I do work for a teaching hospital and the salaries are lower than at other hospitals or in private practice."

Well that made sense to Issy. He made enough to be comfortable but not live extravagantly like other doctors that she had heard about.

The Colonel snarked: "Disappointed, sweetheart? Are you going to have to find yourself another sugar daddy now?"

Issy turned to face him, appalled by his comment. "Greg is not my sugar daddy. I'm not after his money. Why are you saying these things about me? You don't even know me."

He jabbed a finger at her. "I know your type. You're a gold digger trying to hook yourself a rich doctor. You probably figured that my son would be an easy target, being crippled and all. You watch out, Greg. Next thing you know there will be an _oops_ and you'll be shelling out for diapers."

Issy could barely keep her temper under control. "That is so not true. I worked hard to get where I am and I have no intentions of tossing it all away with an accidental pregnancy. Believe me, that is the _last_ thing on my mind."

The Colonel snorted: "Why should I believe you? You're a good-looking twenty-five year old babe screwing my crippled forty-eight year old son. What else could you possibly want other than the security that would come from marrying a doctor?"

"How about that I just want a relationship with your son? And why is it that the only adjective that you can use to describe Greg is _crippled_?"

John roared: "Cuz he is!"

Issy retorted: "He uses a cane; it doesn't mean he's crippled."

People at other tables were staring at them. Mrs. House tried to shush her husband but to no avail.

"It's not just the bad leg; he's handicapped in more ways than that."

All these years Issy had assumed that most people had Brady Bunch kind of families while hers had been the anomaly. Now she wasn't so sure. "How can you be so mean to your own son? Greg's brilliant; he's well respected in the medical community. He's funny, he's talented."

John interrupted her with a smirk: "Talented in the bedroom?"

You could have heard a pin drop at the table. Issy's mouth dropped open in shock at his vulgar comment.

Mrs. House hissed: "That's enough, John. I thought we were here to have a nice dinner and catch up with our son."

"We are, Blythe. We are catching up with our son and learning all kinds of things about his little girlfriend. Now Issy, you were talking about Greg's talents? Why don't you continue?"

He was baiting her and she knew it but she couldn't stop herself. She didn't understand why Greg was not defending himself to his dad, but she felt compelled to do so. "I was referring to Greg's musical talent. I could listen to him play the piano for hours."

His mother smiled as she turned to face her son: "I'm glad you're still playing dear. You still have the same piano? The one that you got while you were in med school?"

House nodded: "Yes, Mom. Still the same piano."

His dad snorted: "You're a rich doctor now. Why haven't you gotten yourself a fancy grand piano? Too cheap to spend the money?"

House merely shrugged: "I like this piano. It has good resonance."

The Colonel rolled his eyes and started to say something else when the waiters arrived with their dinners. Issy hoped that this would put an end to the conversation for a while. Her stomach was churning from the tense atmosphere and she wasn't sure that she would be able to eat much. She waited until everyone was served and had picked up their utensils before she picked up hers and dug in.

During dinner, Wilson engaged Mrs. House in some benign conversation about her roses and plans for future trips. Issy was profoundly grateful that the focus had been taken off of her for a while and tried to relax enough to enjoy her food. Greg had been right; it was an excellent steak and it seemed a shame to waste it. She made a game attempt but there was no way that she could eat that much food. When the waiter came by to check on them, she asked for a box. The waiter whisked her plate away to wrap it up for her.

Mrs. House set aside her utensils and said: "We got interrupted earlier, Issy. I was wondering if you had a certain specialty that you were interested in."

"I'm not sure yet, Mrs. House. We're on rotations right now and we'll get to sample different areas of the hospital. Right now I'm on the cardiac floor and I like it."

"What do you get to do as a student nurse?"

"Oh, everything that the RN's do, just under their supervision. I've started IV's and given medications. I've helped patients with their rehab, walking in the hall and discussing their diet and medications."

The Colonel smirked: "Bed baths."

Issy replied calmly: "I've done that too, but it's mostly the nurse tech's job to do the baths."

The Colonel continued to rag on her: "Inserted any catheters?"

_I'd like to jam one up you without any lidocaine._

"Yes, I've done that too. I've also been a part of the code team twice. I helped pass meds and one time I did chest compressions until the resident got there."

Mrs. House smiled at her: "Well, that's very impressive, dear. So where will you go on the next rotation?"

"I don't know yet. We gave them a list of our preferences, but of course, we don't know if we'll get them. We'll get our next assignment in two weeks."

"Where else did you request to go?"

"Surgery, ICU and the ER."

Wilson grinned at her and teased: "What? Not oncology?"

Issy smiled at him: "No, sorry. But from what I hear, no one requested oncology, so by the luck of the draw, I bet I'll end up there."

"Well, if you end up on my floor, I'll try not to make your life too miserable. And we have some great nurses. I'm sure you'd learn a lot from them."

"I'm sure I would. It's just right now I'm leaning towards getting either ICU or ER certified, so that's why I wanted to go to those areas of the hospital."

Mrs. House asked: "You have to get certified to work in those areas?"

Issy replied: "You don't have to, but it's recommended. They prefer to hire nurses for those areas that have the extra qualifications. Plus it's a higher salary if you have the certification too."

To Issy's dismay, the Colonel just couldn't keep his mouth shut. "Ah, but you won't really _need_ the money. You'll have your rich sugar daddy doctor husband to take care of you."

Issy replied in a calm tone. "If marriage happens, that's great. But I prefer to be able to support myself."

Mrs. House nodded with approval: "That's very smart of you, my dear."

The Colonel pretended to agree: "Yeah, with the divorce rate in this country, I guess you have to be prepared. Cuz who knows if you'd get alimony or child support? Greg, would you be willing to give Issy alimony when you get divorced?"

House picked at the remnants on his plate. "Wow, Dad, that's really putting the cart before the horse, isn't it? Issy and I are not even in the _talking_ _marriage_ stage yet."

"I know that. It's just hypothetical."

"And hypothetically, I don't know. I prefer to not think about divorce at this point. Or marriage."

John smirked: "So you're saying you don't intend to ever marry Issy? This is just a fling for you?"

House replied calmly although he was seething inwardly: "You're putting words in my mouth. All I'm saying is that it's too early to talk marriage yet."

"Well you never know when things could change. That little _oops_ could happen and there you are, heading down the aisle, trapped in a marriage that you didn't want."

He shook his finger at House. "And if you do get hitched, you better get a pre-nup. Chances are good that she'll get tired of your crap within a short time, file for divorce and try to take you for everything you've got."

Issy opened her mouth to protest, but House laid his hand on her arm, a silent plea to let him do the talking.

"I'll take that under advisement, Dad. But like I said we have no marriage plans at this point.

He looked at Issy and squeezed her hand. "Issy's not that type of person anyway."

His dad interrupted: "You don't know that. You haven't known her that long. Besides, people change, especially when there is a child involved."

Issy couldn't take it any more. "Stop it, already. You've got us knocked up, married and divorced before we've even spent our first Thanksgiving together. You just met me and yet you _assume_ that I'm the type of person that will take a man for everything he's got. I realize that you think we moved in together too quickly, but the relationship is going to progress at a much slower pace now. I _will _finish school. I haven't worked this hard and come this far to stop now."

"You could get knocked up and still be able to graduate. June is less than nine months away. You might be hugely pregnant but you could do it."

Issy firmly shook her head: "Not going to happen."

The waiter brought Issy her to-go box and then inquired about dessert. House quickly stated: "Sorry, but we have to get going. My parents have a plane to catch. Just bring me the check, please."

Wilson was surprised that House had asked for the check. Was he really going to pay for this expensive meal? That was no unlike him. He must really want to get away from his parents. It certainly had been an uncomfortable evening. House's dad had really been on a tear tonight, worse than Wilson had ever seen him. He felt sorry for Issy, knowing that she would bear the burden of House's wrath in a short while, when the two of them were alone. Stacy used to tell him about House's brooding silences and subsequent tirades after one of these dinners and they were not pretty. At least House had only had some wine tonight; his tirades were worse after drinking hard liquor.

The waiter seemed anxious to get rid of them too. He returned promptly with the check and without even glancing at it, House handed him his American Express card. The waiter hurried off to process it.

Mrs. House admonished her son: "Greg, we were going to take _you_ out to dinner, not the other way around."

"I'm happy to treat you, Mom."

The Colonel snarked: "Oh, let our rich doctor son pay once in a while, Blythe. Besides, it probably impresses Issy and then he'll get lucky later, right, son?"

House ignored his dad's words and drained the wine bottle into his glass. There hadn't been much left, but he gratefully drank what there was and longed to get home to his own liquor cabinet. That bottle of Maker's Mark was calling his name.

Finally they were out in the parking lot and heading to their cars. Mrs. House hugged her son and gave Issy a quick embrace. Softly, she said: "It was nice to meet you, dear. Take good care of my boy."

Issy nodded: "Yes, ma'am, I will. It was nice to meet you too."

The Colonel merely nodded at House: "Son."

House nodded back: "Dad."

The Colonel extended his hand to Wilson: "Wilson, always a pleasure to see you again."

Wilson gave him a quick shake. "Good to see you too, Colonel. Blythe. See you next time."

The fact that his Dad had not said 'good night' to Issy was not lost on House. It was so typical of his father. The three of them watched his parents drive off. Issy let out a sigh: "I need a drink."

House growled: "Me too. Let's go home. See ya tomorrow, Wilson."

Without waiting for a reply, House stalked off towards his car, Issy calling goodnight to Wilson as she trailed in his wake.

**A/N: Thank you everyone for your reviews. I really do try to respond to everyone who drops me a line, but sometimes FF does strange things, like NOT sending emails when it is supposed to. **


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

**A/N: Thank you everyone for your wonderful reviews. As you can imagine, after that lovely dinner, the shit hits the fan here. **

**Warning: Some parts of this chapter may be difficult to read. Move forward at your own risk. **

As soon as they walked into the apartment, House headed directly for the liquor cabinet. He poured a shot of bourbon, slugged it back and then immediately poured another one. Issy thought she would give him a few minutes alone, so she quietly padded down the hall to the bedroom. She removed her good clothes and put them away. After slipping into some lounge pants and a tank top, she headed back to the living room.

House was pouring when she walked into the room, so she knew it was at least his third shot. She walked up next to him and grabbed her own glass. As she poured a shot of scotch, he growled: "What did I tell you about pigs and mud? Didn't you listen?"

She tossed the scotch back and poured another one. "I did listen, but he was just so nasty to you, that I couldn't take it. I was just sticking up for you."

He drained his glass and poured another one. "He's always like that. The best thing to do is to just sit there and take it. I could have defended myself if I wanted to. You didn't have to do it for me. It just makes him think I'm a big pussy, having to let a woman fight my battles for me.

"He was talking trash about both of us. I just couldn't sit there and take it."

House slammed back that shot too. Issy had now lost count of how many he had had. "You _could_ have and you _should_ have. That's what I _told_ you to do. Why _couldn't_ you just sit there and take it? Aren't you used to _'taking it'_ from johns? His name is John, after all."

Issy huffed: "I'm not used to taking _that_ kind of crap. And I've never seen _you_ put up with anybody's crap, not even Dr. Cuddy's. How could you stand it? How could you sit there and say absolutely nothing while he was talking that trash? And what's with your mother? Why does she let him get away with it?"

House growled: "Leave my mother outta this. You know _nothing_ about my family. Nothing."

Issy shrugged her shoulders: "Well, you're right about that."

She poured another shot and sat down on the couch with it. She was so preoccupied with her own musings about the evening that she didn't notice House slamming back two more shots, adding fuel to the white-hot anger that was building inside of him.

He poured one more shot and dropped down on the couch next to her. She felt his eyes on her and looked up. The look on his face frightened her.

"It's time for you to earn your keep. I may not be buying the cow, but I am leasing her by the week and I'm ready for some milk. Bedroom now. I want you naked by the time I get there."

Issy gulped down the remainder of her scotch and then headed down the hall. This wasn't going to be a night of 'boyfriend' sex. She steeled herself for the approaching storm.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Issy was naked and posed provocatively across the bed when House limped into the room. He was staggering quite a bit and Issy wondered just how much he had had to drink.

He waggled his eyebrows and said: "Moooooooo. Love that set of udders you've got, babe. But there seems to be an imbalance in the universe. I'm not naked and you are."

He clumsily kicked off his shoes while Issy scampered out of bed. She hurried to unbutton his shirt and unzip his pants. When he was completely nude, he pressed her against his body and rubbed his growing erection against her belly. He fisted her hair and pulled her head back, exposing her throat to him. His kisses and licks quickly turned into nips and bites and she had to bite her lip to suppress her cries. He was biting her harder than he ever had before and it hurt. She was sure that she would need some foundation in the morning to cover up the bruises that his love bites would undoubtedly leave.

His hands roamed down her back and settled on her ass, squeezing it hard. He pressed her closer, rubbed his erect member against her and hissed. "That ass of yours makes me so hot."

He gave her ass a loud smack. "Up on the bed. Doggie style."

It was going to be rough and tumble sex tonight. Issy wanted to slow him down a bit so that she had time to get wet. In a sultry tone, she asked: "Want me to blow you a little first?"

He smacked her again: "God damn it! Why aren't you listening to me tonight? If I wanted you to suck me, I'd have told you to get on your knees. Get up on the bed and point that gorgeous ass at me."

Issy hoped that he would at least take the time to finger her and make sure that she was wet before he dove inside. She got into position and looked at him saucily over her shoulder, trying to connect with him.

House didn't even look at her face. One hand grabbed her breast and gave it a hard squeeze; the other hand went for her slit. He rubbed his fingers between her lips for a moment and then slid them inside of her. She wasn't as wet as she wanted to be, so she quickly conjured up her favorite fantasy of 'boyfriend' sex with Greg. That helped and his fingers started to slide in more easily.

Suddenly he pulled his fingers out and rammed his cock inside of her. He grabbed her by both hips and pumped hard into her. She met him thrust for thrust. This wasn't her favorite position, but if he'd finger her clit, it could be enjoyable. He didn't seem interested in helping her reach her peak, so she balanced on one hand and helped herself.

It was obvious that he noticed what she was doing by his next words. "Like it rough, doncha, Randi? My little randy girl likes a big cock pumping her hard like this, doncha, babe? Well, let's see how well you like this."

Abruptly he pulled out of her, spread her ass cheeks apart and poked his cock against the tight puckered hole. Issy stopped fingering herself and cried out: "Greg, no! Not there. Please. I'm not into that."

"Oh, shush, my little Holstein. I thought I'd try some chocolate milk tonight."

He laughed nastily and poked harder against her hole. "Stop clenching and relax. Let me in."

Issy whimpered: "Greg, no. Please. Please don't do this."

He didn't respond to her pleas; with his hands, he spread her cheeks further apart. His cock had picked up some lubrication from being inside her pussy, but apparently he decided that it wasn't enough. She heard him spit and a bit of moisture hit her exactly on her asshole. Burning with humiliation, she buried her face into the pillow and willed herself to relax and get through it.

He poked against her entrance again. "That's it, Randi, relax that little ass hole for me."

She tried to relax, but it had been a long time since anyone had invaded this hole and Greg was a big man. No matter how much she tried to relax, she was afraid that it was still going to hurt and that kept her from relaxing completely. She begged him to slow down and give her time to get used to his girth, but he just grunted and steadily edged his way inside.

Finally he was completely inside of her. "Damn, Randi, your back door is really tight. I can't believe that I haven't tried it before now."

She used her muscles to squeeze him rhythmically; the action helped to dilate her anus and also brought him to the edge very quickly. He howled with pleasure when he came and then pulled out and collapsed on the bed next to her.

She couldn't look at him; instead she kept her face buried in the pillow, listening to his ragged breathing. Finally he caught his breath and said: "That was hot, babe. You got a nice tight hole. It hasn't seen much action, has it?"

Issy mumbled: "No."

"Well that could change now. I liked it."

He let out a nasty laugh and smacked her ass. "You gonna lick me clean now?"

Her eyes popped open wide: _no way!_ Before he could grab her, she jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom, his laughter following her.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Issy shut and locked the bathroom door. Her own breathing was ragged but it wasn't from lust. She splashed water on her face and then looked at herself in mirror. _Stupid, stupid, stupid. Why didn't you keep your mouth shut at dinner? He wouldn't have gotten so mad and he probably wouldn't have done this!_

She felt the tears start, but she blinked hard to make them go away. He was _not_ going to see her cry. After turning on the hot water tap, she soaped up one washcloth and then merely wet another one. He wanted his dick cleaned, and she'd do it, but not with her mouth, not after he'd been _there_. She figured that she had better clean him in case he wanted another round in a different hole. He was already angry and she didn't want to make him madder.

Issy needn't have worried about round two. Between the bourbon and the orgasm, House was snoring when she returned to the bedroom. She gently cleaned his cock, careful not to awaken him. After all, he could wake up in the middle of the night and want round two, so she wanted to be prepared. After cleaning and drying his cock, she returned to the bathroom and tossed the washcloths in the sink.

Her butt stung. She dabbed at it with some toilet paper and was dismayed, yet not surprised to see blood on the toilet paper. Angrily she tossed the wad of tissue into the trashcan and searched the cabinet for some relief. Greg suffered from hemorrhoids due to constipation from his Vicodin intake and Issy knew that he kept some rectal anesthetics on hand. A squirt of Balneol on a wad of toilet paper gently cleansed and soothed the area; a dab of Preparation H eased the pain somewhat. She tossed everything back into the cabinet and washed her hands before returning to the bedroom.

Greg was still snoring. Issy pulled the covers up over him and set her alarm clock. She climbed in next to him, curled up on her left side and tried to fall asleep. Issy tried counting sheep and picturing her future home and dog, but to no avail. Her anxiety was at an all time high. Greg had really scared her tonight, and once again; she doubted her decision to go along with this deal. Reminding herself that she felt like she hadn't had a choice was not much of a comfort. This was the roughest that he had ever been with her. Would he be mean like that again? Most of the time it had been 'boyfriend' sex, but there had been moments of roughness and dominance on his part, so the possibility of it happening again was pretty good. Issy knew what had set him off _tonight;_ she wondered if she could figure out how to prevent similar situations from occurring in the future. She sighed; sometimes she was able to distract Frank and other times she couldn't. It would probably be like that with Greg too.

She stared at the clock and watched the minutes tick away. She had not had many anxiety attacks since she had moved in with Greg. When they had hit her, she had snuggled deeper into his embrace and let his warmth and manly scent soothe her to sleep. Issy felt protected in his strong arms, feeling like as long as his arms were around her, no one could hurt her and thus she would be able to go back to sleep.

That wasn't the case tonight. There would be no comfort in his arms tonight, because he was the cause of her anxiety attack. She peered over her shoulder at him. He was snoring and seemed deeply asleep. Issy decided to take the chance. If she didn't get out of bed and draw, she'd never get to sleep tonight. Quietly, she slipped out of bed, pulled out her backpack, scooped up her clothes and headed out to the living room.

She waited until she got out to the living room to pull on her tank top and lounge pants, and then she looked around in the semi-darkness for a comfortable spot to draw. Wanting to have her back in a corner, she finally decided on the corner behind the piano. She felt hidden and secure back there. After turning on a small lamp on top of the piano, she settled into her spot, unzipping the old backpack and pulling out her stuffed dog. She hugged Pookie to her breast and let a few silent tears fall as she whispered her fears to him. His presence comforted her, as usual, and she propped him against her thigh as she pulled out her pad and colored pencils.

Issy felt especially insecure tonight. Thoughts of Frank and the things he used to make her do kept invading her mind. She couldn't chant her usual mantra of _'He's not here, he's not here'_ because Doc _was_ here, and he had been the one to set her off tonight. She wondered if she could last until the end of the school year with Doc. June still seemed so far away, that she didn't want to count the days or the weeks like she often did. She just kept mumbling to herself as she started drawing a small cottage: _'June, June, June, if I can just make it to June'._ The small house would be light blue, like the sky, with white shutters and a chimney. Some rose bushes on the side might look nice too. A white picket fence would surround the yard and the black lab would have a doghouse that matched the cottage. Within minutes, she was in her little fantasy world and nothing else mattered.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

A short while later, House woke up with a snort. Weird dreams had disturbed his sleep. He mumbled, rolled over on his left side and buried his face into his pillow as he reached for Issy's warmth. His brain went to a slightly higher level of consciousness when he found nothing but a pillow on her side of the bed.

_Probably in the bathroom._

He hugged her pillow to his chest and dozed off again. A half hour later, he was awakened by another strange dream. Head throbbing with the beginnings of a hangover, he again reached for Issy and again he didn't find her.

_Where the hell is she?_

He lay in bed, listening to the sounds of the apartment. It was quiet and there were no bathroom noises. Wondering where she could be, he got up and padded naked into the bathroom. After flicking on the light, he surveyed the scene. There were damp washcloths in the sink and the cabinet door was not quite closed. He pulled it open and glanced inside. The Preparation H and Balneol were not exactly where he had left them. He frowned and glanced into the trashcan, cursing when he saw the blood on the tissue.

_Damn it!_ He hadn't meant to hurt him, but obviously he had. What the hell was his problem that he felt the need to vent his frustrations on his plaything? His parents had royally pissed him off, but Issy didn't deserve to be treated like that. She wasn't his personal punching bag.

The apartment was only so big. She must be in the living room or the kitchen, so he headed down the dark hallway. He paused when he reached the living room. It was dark except for one small light on top of the piano. The TV wasn't on and there were no lights on in the kitchen. He inched into the room, expecting to find her sleeping on the couch, but she wasn't there. Finally he spotted her feet sticking out from behind the piano. He quietly limped forward. She was sitting on the floor, legs splayed out in front of her, like a little kid. She was drawing on a pad and there was an old dirty stuffed thing that she kept hugging. Perhaps it used to be a stuffed animal, but it was so filthy that House was unable to identify the species. House felt a tug on his heart; she looked so young and vulnerable sitting in the corner like that. He had never seen her draw before; was it something that she did when she couldn't sleep?

Fascinated, House watched her for a few more minutes. Issy would occasionally pause, look over her work and then carefully select another colored pencil and continue drawing. She seemed to be having a running commentary with herself or with that stuffed animal. He couldn't hear her words but he could see her lips moving.

Finally he couldn't take it any longer. In a soft voice, he asked: "Issy, what are you doing?"


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

**A/N: This chapter always makes me cry. Have a box of tissues handy. **

Finally he couldn't take it any longer. In a soft voice, he asked: "Issy, what are you doing?"

_Caught in the act!_ _Oh, you're in trouble now, young lady._

It was as if Issy had been transported back in time, back to her childhood home in Akron where the bad things had taken place.

Her body tensed and she stared up at him. House was shocked by the look of absolute terror on her face.

Her jaw started quivering and she stammered out: "N-nothing. I'm n-not doing anything."

She clumsily started shoving pencils, pad and the stuffed thing back into a filthy old backpack, something else that House had never seen before. This was a small apartment; where had she hidden it?

He asked her again: "Issy, what are you doing? Why are you out here in the middle of the night, sitting on the floor?"

_He caught me! I'm trapped! I'm in so much trouble now!_

"N-nothing. It's n-nothing. I j-just c-couldn't sleep. I'm s-sorry if I b-bothered you. Let's go b-back to b-bed. W-want m-me to m-make you h-happy again?"

Issy had stuffed everything back into the backpack and was now trying to hide it behind her back. Did she really think he hadn't seen it? Curiosity completely aroused, he said: "Let me see what you're drawing."

She wouldn't look him in the eye. "N-no. Oh, n-no. It's s-stupid; you don't w-want to s-see it."

He plopped down on the couch and made his voice a touch more commanding. "Yes, I do. C'mon, show me."

_I don't want to show you. You only want to see them so that you can make fun of them and tell me how stupid they are._

She looked up at him, her face contorted with terror. "N-no, it's s-stupid. I know it's s-stupid and a w-waste of p-paper. I won't do it again. I p-promise."

House was quickly becoming frustrated with her reaction. "Issy, get over here and show me what you've been drawing."

He was shocked when she crawled completely under the piano, cradling the backpack against her stomach and whimpering: "No. P-please don't. P-please don't tear them, Uncle F-frank. I won't do it anymore. I p-promise. I p-promise I'll be good. Please don't hit me."

_Uncle Frank? Don't hit me? What the fuck?_

In his most gentle tone, House said: "Issy, please come out from under there. I'm not going to hit you. I just want to see your drawings. I don't think they're a waste of paper and I won't tear them. I just want to look at them."

Sounding like a small child, Issy whispered: "You promise?"

He patted the couch to encourage her to join him. "I promise. Come over here."

She knew she had no choice; if she didn't come out under her own power, he'd drag her out and that would make him madder. Issy slowly crawled out from under the piano and over to the couch. She knelt on the floor in front of him, head bowed, looking very ashamed. The backpack was clutched to her chest.

Her behavior fascinated House. She seemed just like a child who had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar, or worse, had broken Mom's favorite lamp. Yet Issy was a grown woman, who obviously couldn't sleep after having a rather stressful evening and was relieving some tension by drawing? Why would that cause such a strange reaction when she was caught indulging in her little hobby?

_Because she had been punished for it in the past, you idiot. Remember those days? Dad hated it when you played the piano. He wanted you outside playing football or baseball with the neighborhood idiots. If Mom wasn't around, he'd slam the piano closed right on your fingers if you didn't move quickly enough._

Apparently someone didn't like Issy drawing and had punished her for it, but who? She had never mentioned her family except for that one time when she had mentioned that her daddy liked the Bears. Who was this Uncle Frank? Had he been the one to punish her? What had happened to her dad?

House wanted answers to the mystery that was kneeling on the carpet in front of him. "Issy, let me see your drawings."

Wordlessly, Issy unzipped the backpack, pulled out the pad and handed it to him without looking up. She couldn't bear the thought that he might tear up all her pictures. Uncle Frank used to make her watch when he tore them or, worse, he would force her to tear them herself. She curled her body protectively around her backpack. Pookie was still inside. Doc hadn't mentioned him, so maybe he was safe from destruction. Issy could hear him flipping the pages and she tried to remember where her car keys were in case she needed to make a break for it. It was getting a bit cold for sleeping in her car, but she figured that she could do it for one night until she figured out what to do next. Tomorrow was Thursday; after school, she could run over to Body Shots, tell them that her ankle had finally healed, give the manager a blow job and get her old job back. She could probably sleep in one of the dressing rooms until she found an apartment again.

His voice broke through her ruminations: "Issy, these are really good."

She peeked up at him; he seemed serious. Sure that it was just some phony praise before the attack, she just shook her head.

Doc frowned: "No, I mean it. These are really good."

Issy muttered: "No they're not. They're stupid. I know they're stupid."

"What's stupid about them? You draw really well and have a great eye for detail. What I don't get is why do you always draw the same thing? I mean, the style and the color of the houses differ, but all the pictures are of a house with a dog in the yard."

She gave a small shrug. Hesitantly she says: "It's my goal. It's what I'm working towards."

Skeptically he says "A house with a dog in the yard?"

Her words came out in a rush: "Yes. I want to finish school, pass the boards and get a job. Then I'll work really hard, live cheaply and save my money until I have enough for a down payment. Then I'll buy a house. It doesn't have to be a big house cuz it's only me. A small house will be just fine, but it has to have a yard so I can have a dog and a dog needs a yard to run around in. So I'll buy a house and I'll get a dog and then I'll have a home."

Issy clamped her hand over her mouth. _Too late!_ She had said too much. She hugged her knees to her chest and buried her face in her arms. Her eyes were tearing up and she didn't want him to see. Issy had never told anyone her dream before. She was sure that House would think her dream was stupid or worse, that she didn't deserve to have such a nice thing as her own home.

What had she done? Why had she told him? The harsh voice inside her head replied: _Because you're a stupid whore, that's why. You think you're going to escape, but you can't. Once a whore, always a whore. You don't deserve to have a decent job or nice things. _

House stared at her, wondering what was going on in her head. Her body was curled in a tight ball, rocking slightly back and forth with the backpack protectively cradled between her thighs and chest.

He reached down and touched her shoulder. She flinched slightly and peeked up at him.

In a gentle tone, he asked: "That's what you want? A job, a house and a dog?"

Issy nodded.

House tilted his head and looked into her eyes. "A house and a dog. That's _all _you want in life? It's not a very big goal. Don't you want to get married and have kids like most women?"

"Married? Kids? Yeah, _right_. Like that's gonna happen."

She pointed at her drawing pad. "_This_ I can do, all by myself. I can do this."

He frowned: "I'm sure you can. You seem very determined. But why are you so convinced that marriage and kids aren't in the cards for you?"

She looked at him like he was an idiot. "What man would want a _whore_ for a wife?"

House was stunned by the brutality of her words. He stared at her for a moment and then said softly: "You're not a whore."

She snorted and said bitterly: "I strip in front of strangers. I fuck men for money. What else would you call it?"

"You're not doing that anymore. If anything, you're an ex-whore."

She gave him the 'you're an idiot' look again. "You pay me to be your girlfriend and sleep with you. What's the difference?"

"You're helping me win a bet. I'm paying you to cook for me and clean my house."

Issy snorted: "Yeah and clean your pipes."

She sighed. "Besides, whore, ex-whore. What's the difference? A man may want to fuck me, but he is not going to put a ring on my finger. I accept that. I have my goal and it revolves around _me_ and what I can do _by myself_. Contrary to what others may believe, I'm not looking to mooch off of _anyone_. I've been taking care of myself for a long time and I'm going to continue to do so."

He reached out his hand and touched her cheek. "My father's an ass. You're not a mooch, not even close. I'm a much bigger mooch than you."

He seemed like he wasn't mad at her anymore, so she dared to ask: "Doc, may I have my pictures back, please?"

He gave them to her without any hesitation and watched as she shoved the pad into her backpack. The mystery was still unsolved. Time to delve further.

"Issy, how did you get here?"

"Here? In your apartment? You invited me to live with you, remember?"

"Don't be a smart ass. That's not what I meant and you know it. How did you get where you are in life? How did you end up stripping and hooking to survive?"

Issy stared at her lap. "You don't want to know. Long boring story."

"Yeah, actually I do."

Issy shook her head. "No. You don't. I'll just seem even more pathetic to you than I already do."

"Oh, cut it out. You're not pathetic. I figure you had some rough patches in life, probably a crappy family and you did what you had to do to survive."

"Yup, that's it. You guessed it. Wanna go back to bed?"

"Not just yet. I want details."

"Details are boring, trust me. C'mon, let's go back to bed and I'll knock your socks off again."

She ran her hand up his leg and gave him a sultry smile. Under ordinary circumstances, that might have distracted him, but not tonight. Solving her mystery took precedence. He grabbed her hand right before she reached his cock.

"My socks are already off. Tell me how you got here."

"You don't want to know."

"Yes, I do."

She yanked her hand out of his grip. "Yeah, and I wanna win the lottery, but that's not likely to happen."

In a threatening tone, he said: "I'm gonna keep asking."

Issy merely shrugged.

He tried a different tactic. "Who's Uncle Frank?"

Issy grew white as a sheet. Her eyes darted from side to side as she clutched her backpack tighter. The answer was a tremulous whisper. "My stepfather."

He heard the fear in her voice. "What did he do to you?"

She choked back a sob. "What do you think?"

Realization washed over him like a tidal wave and House felt the bile rise in his throat.

_Oh Christ!_


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20 Issy's story.

**A/N: WARNING! Graphic description of child abuse. This may be difficult to read. Proceed with caution. If you choose not to read, you can send me a PM and I'll PM you a brief summary of the chapter so you know where we are in the story without all the difficult details.**

"I was Daddy's little girl growing up. He and I were very close. He was the one who took me for ice cream, taught me to ride a bike and kissed my boo-boos. He was the one who went to the parent-teacher conferences and helped me with my homework. He was the most important person in my life. My mom wasn't that into being a mom, you know what I mean?"

"When I was 8, I came home from school one day to find my mom ripping all the pictures of my daddy out of the photo albums. When I asked her what she was doing, she said Daddy had left us and was never coming back, so she was getting rid of all the pictures of him. I went nuts, screaming and crying. She smacked me and sent me to my room. I tried to hide my photo albums but she ran in and took them from me before I could hide them. I only managed to save one picture of him."

"Not long after that, this guy started hanging around. He worked at Goodyear too. He starting coming over on Sundays to drink beer and watch football with my mom. Then he started coming over on Saturdays too. Sometimes he'd spent the night and I could hear strange noises coming from the other bedroom, but I was too little to know what they were at the time."

"He started coming over more and more often. He'd bring me candy or little presents and he'd be really nice to me. But I was still missing my daddy and I didn't want to be nice to him. I wanted my daddy back and somehow I knew that if Frank were hanging around, that Daddy would never come back. Eventually, I started accepting the candy and talking to him. I'd tell him about school or my friends and seemed to really listen. My mom never really paid any attention to me except to yell at me or punish me. If I wanted breakfast before school, or a sandwich in my lunch bag, I had to do it myself. If she wasn't eating dinner, I had to fend for myself. There were many nights when her only dinner was rum and cokes, and I'd just make myself a grilled cheese sandwich."

"Mom was always complaining how we didn't have enough money after Daddy left, although she always had enough money for booze. One night she came home and said she was being transferred to the swing shift. It was a pay raise and _god knows we needed the money._ The only problem was the hours were 3PM to 11:30PM and what was she going to do with me? After all, I was too young to leave home alone at night."

"And then she came up with this _brilliant idea_. Frank would move in with us. He worked the day shift and he could be home at night with me while she worked. She said it was the perfect solution and he moved in the following week."

"At the time I was in the fourth grade and I had to come right home from school and cook dinner for me and _Uncle Frank_, which is what he now insisted I call him."

"After dinner I'd wash the dishes, do my homework and go take my bath. Sometimes he'd walk into the bathroom to check on me while I was in the tub. He'd say he wanted to make sure I was OK, or did I need any help. I couldn't understand why he thought I'd need help cuz I'd been taking baths on my own since I was six. I'd tell him I was fine and sometimes he'd just leave, but sometimes he'd sit on the toilet and talk to me while I was trying to bathe. I was kinda, you know, embarrassed, but I was afraid to say anything. I didn't want him to get mad and tell mom that I was being unpleasant or something. Usually he'd leave before I was ready to get out of the tub, but some nights he didn't. Oh, he'd hold the towel up and act like he wasn't looking at me but I knew he was."

"He'd sit in the recliner every night to watch TV. And after all my chores and my bath were done, I was allowed to watch TV until bedtime. So I'm come out in my nightgown, sit on the couch and watch whatever show he was watching. After a while, he asked me to come sit in the recliner with him. Now you have to understand, I used to sit in the recliner and watch TV with my Daddy all the time and I missed that a lot. My mom never showed me any affection, but my Daddy did. We'd snuggle in the recliner and it was really nice. I knew Frank wasn't my Daddy, but I thought well, it would be OK if I sat with Uncle Frank cuz Daddy wasn't here."

"So night after night, I'd sit in the recliner with him. He'd stroke my back and kiss my forehead, and that's all he did at first. He started letting me stay up late on Friday nights and sometimes I'd fall asleep in his lap. Well, one night I woke up in the chair and he was touching me in between my legs. It freaked me out so I pretended that I was still asleep, but I peeked a little bit so that I could see what he was doing. He had pulled down his zipper and taken his dick out. The only dick I'd ever seen before that had been the three-year-old neighbor's when he was playing naked in his little wading pool. So compared to that example, Frank's dick was huge. I couldn't stop looking at it. Then he took my hand and put it on his dick. With his hand on top on mine, he rubbed and rubbed until he groaned and some white stuff shot out. I didn't know what it was, of course; I thought I'd hurt him, but I was too scared to say anything. He continued to use my hand to rub him and then he wiped himself off with a tissue, tucked his dick back in and carried me to bed. I pretended to be asleep the whole time, but after he left I lay awake for a long time trying to figure out what had just happened."

"After that, I wasn't so eager to get into the chair with him, but he'd say: _'Oh, come on, Issy, it's so nice when we snuggle, isn't it? You know it makes Uncle Frank happy when you sit with me and you want me to be happy, don't you?'_

So then, I felt like I had to get in the chair, cuz if Uncle Frank wasn't happy, maybe he'd leave and Mom would have money problems again or maybe he'd tell Mom I was being bad and she'd spank me. So I'd get in the chair."

Issy paused for a moment. House felt a chill deep in his bones and it had nothing to do with the fact that he was butt-naked on the couch. He asked in a quiet tone: "When did he start touching you while you were awake?"

"It wasn't long after that. One night he wanted to show me how grown-ups kiss so he kissed me on the mouth. He said it would be good for me to practice with him so that I'd know what to do when I got married. So we kissed on the mouth and he frenched me and made me french him back. I thought that was really gross, but I did it cuz he wanted me to. Then he'd pull me onto his lap so that I was straddling him and rub up against me. In the early days, he kept his clothes on, but I could still feel his dick pressing up in between my legs. He'd rub up against me until he groaned. Then he would wrap me up in a big hug and say: _'Isn't this nice? Don't you like_ _this?_ _I sure do.'_ And I would have to agree with him, cuz I knew he wouldn't like it if I said no."

"Every night he still came in the bathroom while I was in the tub, but now he didn't try to hide the fact that he was looking at me. When I was ready to get out of the tub, he would be holding the towel so that I had to get out of the tub naked and go to him to get dried off. He insisted on drying me off and the whole time he'd tell me how pretty I was and how sexy I was and how I was going to make some man very happy one day. Naturally, I didn't understand what he meant by all that, but I just nodded and played along."

"One night, he walked into the bathroom and all he was wearing was his underwear. He sat on the toilet and talked to me just like always, as if there was nothing weird about him sitting there in his Jockeys. I was scared and didn't want to get out of the tub, but eventually the water got cold and I had to. He dried me off and then trapped me between his legs. He started telling me how sexy I was and how hot I got him and that he had something to show me. He pulled out his dick and wanted me to touch it. I shook my head but he wrapped my hand around it and made me start rubbing it. He started telling how good that felt and how happy it made him and stuff like that. He said it was important that I learn how to keep a man happy and if I were good at sex, then my man wouldn't leave me."

Issy snorted. "I was _so_ stupid, _so_ innocent that I asked him if that was why my daddy left and he laughed and said: _'Yeah, probably. Your mother is not very good at sex, but I think that if you practice, you could be a lot better than she is. You wanna practice with me so that you can be real good when you get married?'_

House felt sick, absolutely sick from what she was telling him, but he let her go on, certain that he had not yet heard the worst of it.

Issy hugged her backpack tighter against her chest. "I'm ten years old; I'm trapped between his legs and his hand is holding mine on his dick, what was I supposed to say? That night I rubbed him until he came and he explained what that white stuff was. After that, he wouldn't let me get dressed after my bath; we would go and lay down in their bed naked and he would _'instruct'_ me. I didn't like it, but I didn't know how to say _'no'_. I was afraid to tell anyone, so I let him keep doing it. He'd rub his dick between my legs; I had to touch him and kiss him and then he started putting his dick in my mouth. I really didn't like that and I cried, but he told me to stop being such a big baby and that all women did it to keep their men happy. _Didn't I want to know how to keep my man happy so that he wouldn't leave me?_ He showed me some porn and of course, the women seemed so thrilled to be sucking off their man. So I learned how to do it. He really liked it and wanted me to do it to him all the time. On the weekends, when he couldn't have any action with me unless my mother passed out drunk, he'd take me to the grocery store or somewhere, park way far out in the lot and make me blow him right there in the car."

House exploded: "Jesus! And you were 10?"

Issy nodded, her face contorted with shame.

"Did he, you know, go further?"

Issy nodded again: "After I starting getting my period, he took me to this sleazy doctor to get me on birth control pills, although at the time, I was told that they were to regulate my periods. I was so stupid that I didn't realize why Frank really wanted me on them. This doctor was so gross. We went to his house and it was a real run-down place, not the kinda place you would imagine a doctor to live. And he chain-smoked the entire time we were there. They took me to this back room where he had an exam table; they made me strip completely and get on the table. I really freaked out and tried to make a run for it, but Frank twisted my arm behind my back and told me to obey. He _helped_ me take my clothes off and made me get up on the table."

"I remember being so embarrassed. I had no idea what a gynecological exam was like and this doctor was really sleazy. He felt up my breasts saying that he was looking for lumps but I could see the bulge in his pants as he was doing it. Then he sat down in between my legs and slid in the speculum. He took a look and assured Frank that I was a virgin. Then he took that out and slid his fingers in me. He rubbed them in and out, saying: _'oh yeah, nice and_ _tight. Whoever pops her cherry is in for a good time'_. And then he winked at Frank."

"Meanwhile, I'm lying on this cold metal table, totally embarrassed and humiliated with this strange man's fingers up inside of me. Finally I was allowed to get dressed while they went back to the living room. The doctor wrote a prescription for me, saying that the pills would regulate my periods and that I had to take one pill every day. We finally left but Frank was mad at me for acting up at the doctor's. I apologized but it wasn't enough for him."

"When we got home, he told me to strip and lay face down on my bed. I did as I was told and he walked in a few minutes later, carrying this length of bright yellow rubber tubing. He called it his _'yellow spaghetti'_ and he proceeded to whip me with it. It hurt like hell and I cried. He called me a big baby and said that I'd better remember this the next time I _even thought_ about disobeying him. I promised to be good and begged him to stop and he finally did. Then he told me to get on my knees and blow him. I was sore and didn't move fast enough so he whipped me across my breasts. When I finally got into position, he grabbed the back of my head and basically just fucked my mouth. He had never been so rough with me before, and I thought I was just going to choke on his cock, but I managed to do my job and swallow like a good girl. It was late, so he sent me to bed without my bath and I cried myself to sleep."

"After that, he would whip me once a week or so, just to keep me in line. He made sure that I took my pill every night and when I had finished the second pack, he decided it was time to _'further my education'_. He got this porn movie, called _'Her First Time'_ and I had to watch it with him. It had 4 or 5 different scenes consisting of a very young looking girl losing her virginity with an older man. One couple was a principal and a student, another was a boss and his new secretary, and well, you get the idea. All during the movie, he kept touching me and saying: _'it's your turn now. I'm going to pop your cherry tonight'._ And I was scared; I didn't understand how his big dick was going to fit up inside of me. I just knew it was going to hurt, but if I didn't do it, I knew he would beat me again. The movie ended and he led me off to the bedroom. He spread a towel on the bed, saying that I might bleed and he didn't want to have to change the sheets before my mother got home. He told me to lie down and spread my legs. I did and he climbed on top of me. I closed my eyes and tried to pretend that I was somewhere else. It hurt when he penetrated me and his weight seemed so heavy on top of me. Then it was over and he pulled out. There was some blood, but it was on the towel, so he wasn't upset about it. He used the towel to wipe the blood off of his dick and wipe me off. Then he hugged me and kissed me over and over again. He was really happy and told me that with lots of practice, I'd be a really good wife one day. I was so sore afterwards and I could hardly walk the next day. At least it was the weekend and I didn't have to go to school, but I did have to clean the house and do the laundry. I guess he knew I would be sore, so he didn't bother me over the weekend, even though my mother passed out on Saturday night. But when Monday night came, he wanted to do it again."

House: "And how old were you when this happened?"

Issy mumbled: "Almost twelve."

"_Christ!_ When did it stop?"

Her voice hardened. "I ran away when I was sixteen. That's when it stopped."

_Four years. She endured being raped for four years. What the hell had that done to her?_

"How did you deal with it all that time?"

She gave a half-hearted shrug. "I ran. I drew pictures, but if Frank found them, he would rip them up. So I would draw at school and leave them in my locker. At home, I would clean. I'd scrub the floors; wash the windows, anything to keep busy. I would copy my homework over and over so that it would be perfect. When he was doing me, I would escape in my mind. I would be running, on a track, along a beach, just anywhere, but I'd be running. Sometimes he would want me to, you know, be a more active participant and if I was in my zoned out mode, I wouldn't respond fast enough to please him and he'd get mad. He'd beat me or punish me in some other really horrible way."

"And you never told anyone? One of your teachers or a neighbor?"

Issy shook her head: "Those punishments kept me from telling anyone what was going on. He'd say: _You think this is bad? If you ever tell anyone what we're doing, this will look like playtime compared to what I'll do to you then._ And I believed him. I was afraid of him. He ruled the house. One day he decided that I couldn't sit on the furniture anymore, unless I was sitting naked on top of him. I couldn't sit at the table to eat dinner; I had to sit on the floor all the time. He told my mother that he was punishing me this way and she just accepted it. She never asked what I did wrong; she just went along with it. He called me 'whore' all the time as if it were my name, like, _'Hey, whore, go get me a beer.'_

"One winter, he wouldn't turn on the heat until right before my mother got home from work. He'd make me take cold showers in the cold house. He'd stand right there next to the shower to ensure that I didn't turn on any hot water and I had to shower and wash my hair in freezing cold water. Then I would have to stand there, dripping and shivering until he decided that I could dry off. I wasn't allowed to dry my hair, so I'd have to go to bed with wet hair. I would pull on jeans, two sweatshirts and three pairs of socks and I still couldn't get warm until 11:00 came and he finally flipped on the heat. I mean, if he'd do that kinda stuff to me and I was _trying_ to do what he wanted, I could only imagine what he would do to me if I told anyone, so I didn't dare. I just tried to be good and do what he wanted, but it wasn't enough. Something would set him off and he'd beat me or punish me in some other way. I'd always try to figure out what I'd done, but sometimes there was absolutely nothing that I had done to deserve being punished. I'm sure that he just did it to exert his authority over me. I had absolutely no control over my life. I had to ask permission to get a drink of water. I couldn't even sleep in peace. He'd do me in the evening as usual, and then come into my bed at 3AM and want to do it again, even though my mom was snoring in the next room."

A few tears leaked out of her eyes and she hastily wiped them away. "I'm sorry, I just, I've never told anyone about this before."

He felt bad for her, but he had to know the rest of the story. "What made you finally run away? I mean, you put up with it for four years."

Issy hung her head: "Oh, c'mon, Doc, haven't you heard enough?"

He couldn't help himself. He needed the whole story, so House shook his head. "I wanna know. You put up with it for four years. What was the pivotal event that made you run away?"

She sighed and stared down at the floor. It never occurred to Issy that she had a choice and that she could just tell him 'no'. She'd never had that option when she was a child and was deathly afraid of the consequences should she deny him what he wanted. So reluctantly, she started to tell him.

"It was the end of my junior year in high school. I thought I could put up with it one more year and then I'd get out. I liked to run and I wanted to be on the track team in high school, but Frank wouldn't let me. Told me it was a waste of my time and since I was a whore, they wouldn't want me on the team anyway. But I used to go practice with them and just run around the track. They seemed to like me OK and the coach wanted me to join, but I told her that my parents wouldn't let me. She seemed to understand and just let me keep running around the track during practice."

"The day before a big meet, one of the milers broke her ankle skateboarding. The coach wanted me to fill in. All the girls crowded around me, pleading with me to go. For once in my life, I felt like I was someone important, and someone wanted me for something other than housework and sex. I could help the team win the meet. I told the coach that I didn't have any money for the uniform and I knew my parents wouldn't give me 20 bucks for that. She said she would loan me the money and I could pay her back later. I knew I would get in big trouble, but I thought I could deal with it. That was so stupid of me. I should have known better. I snuck out of the house early Saturday morning and went to the meet."

She looked House in the eye and gave him a tiny smile. "I won the mile for our school. Everyone was so happy. The whole team cheered and hugged me. My name was going to be engraved on the trophy and it would be displayed in the trophy showcase in the school auditorium. It sounds so stupid, but that was way cool when I was in high school."

In a soft voice, he said: "It's not stupid. I used to run track and play lacrosse. My name ended up on a few trophies. It _was_ cool."

She gave him a small smile, grateful for his understanding. "Thanks"

They sat in silence for a few minutes and then House prompted her: "So what happened when you got home?"

Issy swallowed hard: "My mom was doing overtime at work so she wasn't there, but Frank was fit to be tied. He was so mad at me. He beat me until I told him where I'd been and then when he found out about the 20 bucks, he laughed and asked how was I going to earn that. I said I could mow lawns or baby-sit or something. He laughed, this really evil laugh, and said he had a much better idea. He locked me in the closet while he made some phone calls. I could hear his voice, but not his exact words. Some time later, he finally let me out of the closet. He wasn't alone; two of his drinking buddies had come over. And for 20 bucks apiece, I was supposed to fuck them. Well, I went nuts. I tried to get away, but I was outnumbered. Frank punched me in the ribs and slammed me up against the wall a few times, until I saw stars. The next thing I knew, they had stripped off my clothes and were tying me to the bed. I kicked and screamed but they just tied my legs and stuffed my underwear in the mouth to shut me up. One of his friends must have weighed 300 pounds and he smelled so bad. When he climbed on top on me, I couldn't breathe. I thought that he was going to crush me to death. I prayed to die right there, but as usual, god didn't listen to me. I had to live through both of his ugly friends using me for their jollies. I couldn't seem to zone out either, like I usually did with Frank. All I could do was lay there and wait for it to be over."

Issy rocked back and forth, clutching the backpack tightly to her chest.

"After they were finished, Frank left me tied to the bed while they went and drank some beers in the living room. They left a couple of hours later and Frank finally walked back into my room, waving 2 twenties in my face. He told me that I could have one to pay back the coach, but he was keeping the other one. And then he told me the _wonderful news_ that we were going to do this again. He realized that he had a _'goldmine with my pussy'_ and he was going to make some extra money this way. He finally untied me, made me take a shower, cuz _he_ didn't want sloppy seconds and then I had to go back to bed and let him get his jollies. Finally he left for the night, and I crawled under the covers. I cried for a little while and then I realized what I had to do. It was bad enough that I was his whore, but I couldn't take doing everyone in the neighborhood. That's when I decided to run away."

_She knew she wouldn't be able to bring much. She couldn't drag a couple of suitcases on the road with her. The best thing to do was to stuff as much as possible in her backpack. Clothes were the most important things so she_ _started pulling open her dresser drawers and tossing items on the bed. The back pack wouldn't hold much, so she decided on 3 pairs of socks, 3 pairs of panties, one extra bra, 3 short sleeve tee shirts, one long sleeve tee and an extra pair of jeans. She'd tie her jacket on top of the pack. As she looked around the room, trying to decide if there was anything else she needed to take, her eyes landed on her stuffed dog. Daddy had given her that dog for her fourth birthday. Pookie had definitely seen better days. A struggle with her Mom had cost Pookie an ear; both of his eyes had fallen out some time back, but she still loved it. He was one of the few things that she had left from Daddy. He had to come with her. She crammed him into the bag. _

_There was one last thing that she had to bring. She pulled open the bottom right hand dresser drawer and felt along the bottom. When she found the envelope taped there, she carefully pulled it off. She took a moment to open the envelope and stare at the photo inside. It was a picture of her and Daddy, the Christmas after she'd turned four. She and Pookie were sitting on Daddy's lap in front of the tree. Her lip started to tremble as she looked at the photo; the words flashed in her head: why did you leave me, Daddy? Why didn't you take me with you?_

_She hurriedly put the photo back into the envelope before she could start to cry. It had to come with her, but it would get all crumpled inside the pack. She thought for a moment and then hurried to her bookcase. She'd bring one book with her so that she would have something to read when she got lonely. She quickly scanned the titles before making her selection. She slipped the photo inside her copy of 'The Phantom Tollbooth' and stuffed it in the pack. After zipping it up, she hoisted in on her shoulders. She was ready to grab some cash and split. _

_Mom's purse was on the kitchen counter as usual. Issy reached in and pulled out her wallet. She grabbed all the bills and stuffed them in the left pocket of her jeans, without bothering to count them. Frank usually left his keys and wallet in a candy dish on the sideboard and thankfully it was there. He had more bills than Mom, including the money that those men had paid Frank tonight for her 'services'. She hoped that this money would last her for a while, until she figured out what to do next. She stuffed those bills in the right hand pocket of her jeans. Quickly she made two peanut butter sandwiches and wrapped them in saran wrap. She tossed them and two apples into a paper sack and quietly made her way out of the house. The street was still and quiet; the only sound was her footsteps as she walked down the sidewalk. The interstate was about a mile away and she headed in that direction. She didn't know exactly where she was going, but anywhere had to be better than home._

Issy didn't tell him all of that; she just summed it up. "I packed some stuff into this old backpack and I waited for my mom to come home. When she and Frank finally went to bed, I took all the money out of her purse and his wallet and snuck out. I walked to the interstate and stuck out my thumb. Truck driver picked me up and by morning I was halfway across Pennsylvania. I've never been back to Ohio and I have no intention of ever crossing that state line again."

She stopped talking and there was silence in the room for a few moments while House tried to absorb what she had told him. Finally he asked: "Where did you go? You were only sixteen; how did you survive?"

"I hitchhiked to New York City, lived on the streets for a while, but can I please tell you the rest another time? Please?"

He really wanted to know the whole story, but when a glance at the clock told him it was 3AM, he decided to give it a rest.

"Alright, you can tell me the rest later. Let's go back to bed."

"Do you want me to sleep on the couch?"

He frowned: "Why would I want that?"

Issy shrugged: "I don't know. I just thought after I told you all this stuff that you wouldn't want me, you know, around any more."

House didn't want to feel sorry for her but he did. She'd had a rough life. No matter what his own father had done to him, the beatings, the ice baths, the sleeping out in the yard in all kinds of weather, all of that paled in comparison to getting raped practically every night, in your own bed by a parental figure _for four years_. It was amazing that she had not run away sooner. He was grudgingly impressed at her resiliency. But he couldn't allow his feelings to show. He had to remind himself that this was just a business arrangement. She was a means to an end, that end being a five thousand dollar win. In June, she would be gone, no matter what.

He snarked: "You think I care that your stepfather used to rape you? You didn't even call it _rape_, so what difference does it make to me? The events of your past do not affect our deal. You're here to help me win my bet and in return I pay you for your services and keep my mouth shut about your former profession. Deal still on?"

She gulped and answered quickly: "Sure, Doc, same deal."

He huffed: "Fine, let's get to bed. It's fucking 3AM and we both have to get up in the morning."

He got up and headed down the hall, stopping to take a leak in the bathroom. Issy took that moment alone to shove her backpack under the bed again, strip off and climb under the covers. House came in a moment later and climbed in beside her. He spooned up against her; his soft cock nestled against her warm smooth ass. Then the events of the evening replayed in his mind and he felt repulsed, not only by all the things that she had told him but also by his own behavior. Was he just one more abusive man in her life? He had never really thought of himself in that way, but he had to grudgingly admit that he had been rather cruel to her on a few occasions, including tonight. Was it really a good idea to keep this bet going? Could he keep the darker side of himself from rearing its ugly head again? Why did he feel the need to vent his frustrations on her? In the darkness of the bedroom, he decided that he couldn't face these questions tonight. He rolled over onto his back, breaking the delicious warm contact with her body. He'd been an ass tonight and he didn't deserve her warmth.

Issy felt him move away and was overcome with shame. He'd said everything was OK and that she could stay, but maybe now he was having second thoughts. Her past was hideous and she shouldn't have told him. She should have just made something up. Hell, once he slept on all of this, he'd probably tell her tomorrow to find a new place to live. He probably found her to be rather repugnant now. It was one thing to be a whore, but to start at such a young age, even though it hadn't been her choice, was just too disgusting for most people to deal with. She shivered at the loss of his body heat, curled up in a little ball, and fell into a fitful sleep.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

House awoke around 8AM; surprisingly early considering how little sleep he had had the night before. He was grateful that Issy was at the hospital and he had some time to himself. He needed to process everything that she had told him.

After wandering to the bathroom for elimination purposes, he then headed to the kitchen. Despite the highly emotionally charged night and the minute amount of sleep, Issy still had his coffee and his breakfast sandwich waiting for him. He poured a mug of coffee, added two spoons of sugar and carried the mug and the sandwich out to the couch.

He thought as he dined. The lack of family photos and other mementos made sense now that he knew her haste for leaving home. He understood now why she had a photo of just her father and not both parents, and why she only had the one. At least he had gotten a few answers to the questions that had plagued him.

But the biggest question of all was why had her dad left? Certainly men abandoned their families all the time, but Issy had painted him as such a devoted father that it seemed out of character for him to do so. Had he really been that devoted, or was it just a child's wishful thinking? Especially when you considered the horrors that she lived through after he left. Naturally her real dad would be a saint compared to Frank.

Where had he gone and why had he never contacted Issy again? Had he tried and his letters and phone calls had been intercepted by her mother? Had he met with an accident? House didn't know, but he had to find out. This wasn't the same as a medical mystery, but it was almost as intriguing.

He had long ago discovered the cigar box that she kept in the bottom drawer of the nightstand. He found her little envelope system of banking amusing and had wondered at the time if she had ever had a bank account. Probably not, since most of her income had been off the books.

He ignored the envelopes today and went right to the stack of papers at the bottom of the box. Her car title, insurance papers, college transcripts and other important papers were there. At the very bottom was the paper he sought.

Her birth certificate revealed her father's name: John William Walker, a relatively common name which would make him more difficult to locate. Unfortunately it did not list his Social Security number. His occupation was listed as a machinist at Goodyear Tire and he was 28 years old at the time of his daughter's birth. Unfortunately it didn't give his exact birthdate, but at least it fixed the year as either 1953 or 1954. John Walker had been born in Ohio, but no city was listed. House grumbled about crappy birth certificates.

Her dad had disappeared when Issy was 8 and it was during the school year because she had said specifically that she had come home from school and he was gone. House decided to allow for some leeway as perhaps it had happened right before she turned eight. And since she turned eight in May of 1990, his disappearance could have been 1990 or 1991.

The list of facts that he had written on the scrap of paper was pathetically small. John William Walker, born in Ohio, in 1953 or '54, worked as a machinist at Goodyear Tire and disappeared in 1990 or '91 on a school day and was never heard from again.

He reached into the milk crate for her copy of '_The Phantom Tollbooth'_ and removed the photo. House wondered briefly if having a photo from 1986 would help find the man but it was all he had. He thought about running to a photo shop to make a copy, but then remembered that his printer also functioned as a scanner so he took the photo into the living room and scanned it onto his computer. He saved it in a password-protected file and he also e-mailed it to himself. Then he stuck the photo back into the book. He has pulled it out so quickly that he didn't remember the exact spot where it had been and he could only hope that Issy wouldn't notice.

After quickly showering and dressing, House sat on the couch with his cell phone and called a bookie that he knew. His guy knew a guy who knew a guy who knew a P.I. and he gave House the guy's name and number.

Lucas Douglas, P.I. agreed to meet House at a nearby coffee shop. The guy seemed a bit flaky, but he had come recommended by Nicky the Nose, so House decided to hire him. He gave Lucas all the information that he had, which admittedly wasn't much. The P.I. didn't seem concerned with the sparseness of the information; he just named his fee and expenses and said he'd do what he could. When House got back to his office, he e-mailed Lucas the only known photo of John Walker and his daughter.

House decided that he wasn't going to tell Issy what he was doing. He didn't know what he himself would do with the information, if anything turned up. If her Dad was found, should he tell her? Should he take a little trip and see the guy, let him try to explain his absence and let him know just what his absence had done to his daughter? House didn't know what he would do if John Walker was found, but he decided to put that decision off until later.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

He had no patient so he sent the team off to the ER to scan the charts for something interesting, while he powered up his computer. He had slept his way through his med school psych classes, believing most of that to be hooey, but after hearing her story, he wanted to learn more about what the 'experts' had to say about the effects of long-term child sexual abuse. What had all those years of abuse done to her? He was sickened and angry that some pervert had forced her to perform sexual acts at such a young age, and that her worthless, alcoholic mother had not protected her. Issy the child had had no one to turn to, no one to rescue her from the abuse, finally having to take matters into her own hands by running away. For Issy, living on the streets had been a better life than living in a house with that pervert. His hand curled into a fist. If Lucas ever tracked down her dad, House would make sure that the guy got the full message of just what his abandonment had done to his daughter.

House didn't like that fact that he was the first person that Issy had ever told her secrets to. He wondered what would be the repercussions on their relationship. Would she be turned off to sex now? And how did he feel, knowing that she had been sexually violated at such a young age? Obviously, he knew that she had been with other men before he met her, but this was different. Is that bastard the reason why Issy gave such a great blowjob? Was he the one who taught her how to do that? Did he train her to always lick his cock clean after sex? House shook his head in anger. Could he even have sex with her again without those images popping into his brain? This was killing his 'girlfriend' fantasy and he wanted that back.

Not that last night had been all about his favorite fantasy. He had vented his anger about his parents on her and he had been an animal to her. Hell, if he was being honest with himself, he had basically raped her. She hadn't wanted sex like that and had tried to dissuade him from taking that particular route for his pleasure. But he was in too much of a state to be dissuaded and had plowed ahead, physically hurting her and setting off an anxiety attack. Even after treating her so badly, _she_ was afraid that revealing her past to him would cause him to end their arrangement. He shook his head; could anyone have lower self-esteem than that?

He spent the rest of the morning on his computer, searching for and reading articles on the psychological effect of long-term childhood sexual abuse. While a lot of it was psychological mumbo-jumbo, he also found some grains of truth.

Article after article described intrusive symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, exaggerated startle responses and bothersome intrusive thoughts. Now that House knew what had happened to her in the bathtub, it made sense that she was extremely jumpy if he walked in on her in the shower. Some victims reenacted situations reminiscent of the trauma, seemingly in a feeble attempt to 'control' the event. Sex workers had a high incident of childhood sexual abuse. Were they reenacting their abuse over and over again? Was that what Issy had been doing or was she just trying to survive the only way she could? She had had a traumatic exposure to sexual behavior at such a young age, yet she seemed to enjoy sex with him. He knew she wasn't faking her orgasms. How was she able to get past the abuse and enjoy sex as much as she did?

Articles also described numbing responses to abuse like emotional constriction, social isolation, retreat from family obligations and a sense of estrangement. He recognized some of those symptoms in Issy's behavior, she had no friends, certainly she was socially isolated and removed from any family obligations, but more disturbingly, House recognized some of those symptoms in himself. Were these characteristics his response to _his_ own childhood physical abuse? He shoved those thoughts back into their box and locked the lid. This was not the time to focus on his issues; he needed to deal with Issy.

Random sentences and phrases got stuck in his brain. 'Home is no longer a place of safety and refuge, but a site of high stress'. _Great_. Did that mean that she'd no longer feel safe living with him, constantly wondering if he was ever going to snap again? Another article mentioned: 'Victims never know when the abuse will happen again, what the abuse will entail, or what will happen if others find out. There is inappropriate guilt over the feeling of responsibility about what happened'.

House knew that Issy blamed herself for what had happened. She had been a lonely child in need of love and affection after her father left, and that bastard had swooped right in. From what he could read, this was a common pattern with pedophiles. Find a lonely child; bribe her with gifts and small tokens of affection that slowly become more and more sexual. House knew from Issy's comments and body language that she felt intensely guilty over what had happened. She kept saying that she was _stupid_ because she had allowed it to happen. House knew she was far from stupid; she was actually pretty damn smart, but even a smart child is sexually innocent and no match for a devious perverted adult.

House had to admit to himself that he really admired her. She had literally dragged herself out of the gutter and aspired to be something more. Granted, being a nurse wasn't the best job in the world, but it was a helluva lot better than being a sex worker. She had a lot of guts. He knew that many sex workers ended up as drug addicts and alcoholics; Issy had managed to avoid that trap. She drank some, sure, but she definitely was not an alcoholic and she claimed that she'd never done any illegal drug stronger than pot. To her, a book was a much better escape than any type of drug.

He glanced at his watch; it was almost lunchtime. Today he didn't feel like mooching off of Wilson who would probably want to rehash the events of last night's dinner. He'd probably pick up on House's mood and ask endless questions. House didn't want to be psychoanalyzed, not today, not ever. He wandered out to the balcony and looked down. There she was, sitting alone on the middle bench, eating her peanut butter sandwich, as usual. Issy had isolated herself from her classmates too, desperately afraid that they would find out her secret. He tried to scrutinize the look on her face, but she was too far away to see the details that he needed. He wondered how she would be when he got home. Would she stutter, a physical manifestation of her anxiety? Would her hands tremble, or would she manage to stuff her feelings down inside of her and try to carry on as if nothing had happened, in the hopes that he would allow her to stay?

He didn't want her to move out. He wanted to go back in time, before his parents showed up. He wanted a re-do for yesterday, but that was not possible. Should he just act like nothing happened? Carry on as normal? He watched her stuff her sandwich wrappings back into her bag and walk back to the hospital's entrance. Were her shoulders slumped more than usual? He wasn't sure from this angle. He desperately tried not to care, reminding himself that this was just a business arrangement. Sure he had hurt her; but now that he knew her past, he wouldn't do anything like that again. He didn't really like anal sex anyway; he had just wanted to hurt something and she had been the closest target. He would have more self-control in the future, and also do everything in his power to keep his parents out of New Jersey.

He wondered if he should talk to someone with more knowledge on this subject. The problem with that idea was that he was universally disliked by most of the hospital's psychiatric staff, having had run-ins with most of them. He doubted that any of them would speak with him on this matter. The only one who was possibly approachable was currently stationed at the South Pole, running a psychological study on how people deal with long-term isolation. If worse came to worse, he'd find a way to contact her. In the meantime, he'd play it by ear when he got home. If Issy was OK with carrying on like nothing had happened, so was he.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Cuddy cornered him in the early afternoon and marched him down to the clinic. Since he needed to complete his clinic duty for the week anyway, he figured that this might be a good way to get his mind off of the articles that he had been reading. He signed in and Nurse Brenda handed him two charts, directing him to Exam Room Four. He grabbed a handful of lollipops and shoved them in his pocket as he headed towards the door.

Two charts for one room? Maybe he was getting lucky and behind Door Number Four would be the Barbi twins. Naw, they hadn't been around since the nineties. Wonder if Hefner had a new set of twins living at the Playboy Mansion? When he opened the door, he was mildly disappointed to find there were no shapely blonde twenty-year-old twins, not that he really expected it. Instead he found two pre-teens and an older woman that he assumed was their Mom. The older girl was playing with her Gameboy while the younger girl had her nose in a book. To House's horror, he saw the title was _'The Phantom Tollbooth'._

He hooked the rolling stool with his cane and pulled it to him. Dropping onto it, he said: "I'm Dr. House."

Before he could say anything more, the Mom jumped in. "I think my girls have mono."

The older girl rolled her eyes but kept playing. "Mom, I told you. I don't have _mono_. I haven't _kissed_ anybody. You get that by kissing someone with it."

House smirked. Ah, the wisdom of youth. "Well, that's not the only way you can get it, but thanks for ruling that out for me."

He quickly reviewed the charts and then addressed the mom: "Both girls have the same complaints? Headache, cough, slight fever?"

As if on cue, the younger girl coughed. She covered her face with the book which House was glad to see was not a library book. The germs would not be spread to the next patron.

Mom nodded. "Yes, Emily's been complaining about a headache for two days. I gave her some Tylenol, but it didn't seem to do help that much. She said she felt worse this morning so I took her temperature and it was 100. Amanda's was 100.5, so I thought I'd better bring them in."

"Amanda didn't complain of a headache?"

"Amanda never complains. She's just been coughing, but when I asked her, she confirmed having a headache for two days."

The younger girl was completely absorbed into her book, ignoring the conversation flowing around her.

House gently tapped the back of the book with his cane. "Come over here, kid. Hop up on the table."

The child carefully marked her place, set the book down and climbed up on the exam table.

"You have a headache?"

She nodded.

"Tilt your head forward, like you are going to touch your chin to your chest."

She did as he asked.

"Does that make the headache worse?"

She finally spoke. "A little bit."

"Look up at me."

The child had brown curly hair and big blue eyes. Her appearance, combined with the book she was reading, made him think of Issy. The chart said this kid was ten. That's how old Issy had been when Chester the Molester started on her. He gave his head a slight shake to refocus on his patient. When he pressed on her sinuses, the child confirmed that they felt sore. He pulled out an otoscope and looked in the child's ears and up her nose.

"Does your throat feel sore?"

"A little."

He placed a tongue depressor in her mouth. "Say AH for me."

"AHHHHH."

"Bigger."

"AHHHHHHHHHHH."

"Good."

He felt the lymph nodes in her neck and then he pulled out his stethoscope. As he held the bell against his hand to warm it, he said: "I need you to take off your sweater so I can listen to your chest."

The child pulled the sweater off over her head and tossed it to her Mom. Underneath she was wearing just a thin undershirt, thin enough that he didn't need to ask her to remove that too. As he moved the stethoscope around on her chest and asked her to take deep breaths, he couldn't help noticing her lack of physical development. Not that he expected any, since she was only ten, but again he thought of Issy. She had been the age of this child when her stepfather started touching her. There was not anything remotely sexual about this child because she was _a child_. His anger surged again, and he had to force it down.

"OK, you can put your sweater back on while I get the thermometer."

He waited while the Mom helped her with her sweater and then stuck the thermometer into her mouth. When it beeped, he pulled it out.

"Her temp's 100. Her nasal membranes are red and there is a yellowish discharge. The post-nasal drip is causing the cough and the sinus pressure is causing the headache. Her throat is a little red, but not too bad. It's not mono; she has a sinus infection. I'll examine your older daughter, but she most likely has the same thing. Ten days of antibiotics will get rid of it. Are your girls allergic to anything?"

Mom stated that they had no allergies and House motioned for the younger girl to get down.

"Hey, gamer, your turn for the table."

The older girl put the game on pause and climbed up on the table. House noted that the younger girl immediately picked up her book and started reading again. He gave her sister the identical exam. The one difference was when House asked her to take off her thick sweater. The girl looked at her Mom and whined: "Do I have to?"

She shrugged: "The doctor needs to listen to your chest."

"But I'm not wearing a shirt underneath, only my _bra_!"

The last word was said in a stage whisper and the Mom looked helplessly at House. He rolled his eyes and walked over to the cabinet. He retrieved a gown and tossed it to the child. "Take off your sweater and put this on, the opening to the back. Let me know when you're ready."

He turned his back on her and tried to think of something other than what Issy had told him last night. He needed to get out of this room and away from these two pre-pubescent girls.

"Ready!"

He turned around and hastened to listen to her chest. The gown was thin enough in the front for him to listen over it. She may have been wearing a bra, but she barely needed it. Through the thin fabric of the gown, he could tell that she was just starting to bud. _Christ! She's twelve. Issy was getting raped at this age._

Again he had to force his anger down. He quickly completed the exam and instructed her to dress while he turned his back and filled out the prescriptions. Once the child was dressed and playing her game again, House turned back around. He handed the Mom prescriptions for Augmentin and instructions to take the antibiotics for ten days. He also told her to give the girls Sudafed for the congestion and guaifenesin to help break up the mucus. He warned her that if they weren't showing significant signs of improvement after five days to bring them back, as it might be a sign that they needed a stronger antibiotic. He offered the girls a lollipop, but only the younger girl took one. The Mom thanked House profusely and hustled the girls out of the room.

Seeing those young girls had disturbed House more than he wanted to admit. After a moment's pause to steady his nerves, House limped back to the desk. Tossing the girls' charts on the finished pile, he said to Nurse Brenda: "Gimme another one, only no kids this time."


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Despite three cups of coffee and a 16 oz Coke, Issy was drooping with fatigue. After all the events of last night, she ended up having only three hours of fitful sleep. She still managed to make coffee and breakfast sandwiches for the two of them before running out of the door. She barely made it to the cardiac floor before morning rounds started, but she was on time and that's all that mattered. Dealing with her patients kept her so busy during the morning that she didn't really have time to think about all of the secrets that she had spilled to Greg.

It wasn't until lunch when she took her peanut butter sandwich out to her usual park bench that it hit her full force. She'd told him almost everything, not all of the horrid details, but enough that he had gotten the picture of just how pathetic her life had been. Why had she told him so much? Why hadn't she just made up some lies like she had other times when people had asked her about her childhood and apparent lack of family? What was it about him that she had looked into his eyes and started spilling her guts?

She didn't have any answers for those questions and that wasn't nearly as important as trying to figure out what to do next. Last night, he said he wasn't kicking her out as he still wanted to win his bet, but she wondered if he would still feel that way today. After sleeping on it, he may decide that her crap just wasn't worth dealing with just to win this bet. He may find her repulsive now, knowing that she had had sex with her stepfather, even though he had called it rape.

Rape. She had never thought of what had happened as _rape_. She had thought rape was when a stranger grabbed you and pulled you into a dark alley or something. For some reason, she had not associated that exact word with what Frank had done to her. But Greg was right. Even though she had let Frank do it, because she was afraid of him, she had been just a child, too young to consent and therefore, legally, it had been rape.

The big question was what would Greg do now? Would he let her stay? Could they continue on as they had been doing or would he ask her to leave? Did she want to stay or would it be better to just leave with the few shreds of dignity that she had left? But where would she go? Would he still help her get an apartment like he had said in their original agreement? She had to admit that she didn't really want to leave. His apartment was nice and when he was in a good mood, he was really fun. Maybe last night had been an aberration because of his parents; maybe he wouldn't hurt her like that again. She struggled to swallow a particularly dry bit of peanut butter sandwich. She could take that chance. It was better than going back to Body Shots and begging, most likely on her knees, for her old job back. And if he wanted anal again, she'd do it without protesting. On the way home, she'd just get a tube of KY jelly so that she would be prepared next time. With the proper lubrication, anal probably wouldn't be so bad. She felt sure that she could get used to it over time. Being with Greg and putting up with the occasional rough stuff was still much better than her old life had been.

After tossing her sandwich wrapper back into her bag, she stood up and headed back into the hospital. The afternoon would be spent in the lecture hall; she'd grab another Coke on the way there to help her stay awake.

Fortunately, today's lecture was just a review because Issy's mind was elsewhere. She pondered all of her options and decided that the best thing to do was to carry on as usual. She'd make dinner, greet him at the door and welcome him home in the same way that she did every day. The way he responded to her would tell her if he wanted her to stay or not. If he wanted her out, she'd ask for help with getting a new apartment. She'd try to make him stick to the original agreement. If he refused, well, she guessed she could sleep in her car for a while. It wasn't that cold yet. She could shower in the hospital's locker room and manage somehow. Hopefully it wouldn't come down to that, but to be on the safe side, she had better check her finances when she got home.

Issy already had the ingredients for tonight's dinner so she didn't need to stop at the grocery store. She just made a quick stop at CVS for some KY jelly. She really hoped that he wouldn't want anal again tonight, but if he did, she was going to be prepared. Her butt still hurt a little bit from last night. She'd put on a little more of his Preparation H and hope for the best.

Once at home, Issy made a beeline for the bedroom. First she stuck the KY jelly into the top drawer of the nightstand so that it would be handy if she needed it. Then she pulled out the cigar box to check her finances. After flipping through all the envelopes, she determined that she had enough for her car insurance and almost enough for next semester's tuition, but not nearly enough extra for first and last on even a crappy apartment. If he wanted her out, he would have to help her, or she'd be sleeping in her car.

She closed the box and put it back in the bottom drawer of the nightstand.

_OK. I can do this. I've done worse. I'll just act like everything is normal and see how he responds._

Issy changed into her running clothes and went out to do her usual mile. Once she returned, she fried up the hamburger and onions while the elbow macaroni cooked. Once all the ingredients were ready, she tossed everything into a baking dish, sprinkled cheese on top, stuck it in the oven and went to take her shower.

The hot steamy shower revived her. She took her time, washing her hair and shaving her legs, until the hot water was almost gone. After drying off, she padded back into the bedroom and decided that low rider jeans and a pale blue tank top with no bra would be a good look for tonight. She finished dressing and was just about to walk back to the kitchen when something on her milk crates caught her eye. She knelt down to take a closer look. Her books were usually perfectly straight and organized by decreasing height, but not today. Not only was her copy of _The Phantom Tollbooth_ slightly askew, it was now in the wrong place. It was a tallish paperback and should have been to the left of Agatha Christie's _'Sleeping Murder'_. Now it was in between _'Sleeping_ _Murder'_ and _'Curtain'_. Someone had been through her things and that person could only be Greg. He obviously had pulled out '_The Phantom Tollbooth'_. What had he been looking for?

_Oh, no. _

She quickly pulled the book out and flipped it open. The photo was not where she had left it, in between pages 60 and 61. She always left the photo there because her favorite drawing of Milo and Tock were on those pages. Now the photo was haphazardly stuck between pages 78 and 79 and there weren't even any drawings on those pages. She would have never stuck the photo there.

She sank to the floor; he'd seen the photo. There was no doubt in her mind about it. The one last little secret part of her had been violated. She wondered why she felt that way. After all the awful stuff that she had told Greg last night, why should she care if he snooped and found that photo? It wasn't rational but she did care. Even though he had been gone for so long, her Daddy was still precious to her and she didn't really want to share his memory with anyone. How could anyone understand the depth of her longing for a man who had left her so long ago without a backwards glance?

She felt the tears come and she allowed herself a moment to grieve her loss. The picture was now 21 years old and fading badly. Pretty soon, she'd only be able to see her Daddy in her mind's eye and that would be very sad. She tucked the photo back in between the usual pages, so that their photo was facing the drawing of Milo and Tock on page 60. Just as she started to put the book back in its proper place, she heard the front door open. Greg was home. She knew that she shouldn't make a big deal out of this, but she wanted to know what he had been looking for. Maybe he'd kick her out, but he'd probably already decided to do that anyway. Figuring that she had nothing to lose, she marched determinately out to the living room, clutching the book in her left hand.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

When House got home that evening, the smell of something delicious permeated the room. _She cooked_, that was a good sign. He heard some noises in the bedroom so he knew she was home. He hung up his own jacket for a change and stashed his helmet and backpack in the closet. He had just settled himself on the couch with the remote control when she walked into the room.

He glanced up at her and noticed the book in her hand. _Crap!_ It was _'The_ _Phantom Tollbooth'_. The jig was up.

In a soft voice, she said: "Hi."

He answered in an equally soft voice: "Hey, babe."

He held out his hand and she stepped forward to take it, another good sign. He gave it a light squeeze and rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand.

After a moment, she said in a hesitant voice: "Greg, were you just browsing through my things or were you looking for something in particular?"

He owed her a semi-honest answer, one that wouldn't reveal his business with the P.I. So he muted the TV and admitted to his indiscretion. "I was snooping and I came across that photo. I assume that's your Daddy, since you sorta resemble him. So that's the photo you managed to salvage, huh?"

He acted like he really wanted to know and she felt drawn to telling him all about it. After a moment's hesitation, she gave into that urge and sank down on the couch next to him. "When I got home that day, Mom was going through all the photo albums like a mad woman. When she told me that Daddy was gone, I totally freaked out. I ran to their bedroom, threw open the closet and saw that all his clothes were gone. I couldn't believe that he was gone, just like that. Why would he go and not take me with him?"

The longing in her voice was heartbreaking. She flipped the book open, glanced at the photo for just a second and then shut it again before she went on. "I went back to the living room and screamed at her to stop, cuz surely Daddy would come back and then he'd be mad if all his photos were destroyed. She smacked me and sent me to my room. I knew that when she finished in the living room that Mom would be after my own photo collection. This photo was in a little gold frame on my nightstand and I quickly shoved in between the mattress and boxspring. But before I could get to my photo album, she stormed back into the room and took it from me. Later on, I took the photo out of the frame and taped it underneath one of my dresser drawers where I knew she'd never find it. When I left home, I took it with me. I kept it in the book to keep it from getting too messed up."

Issy sighed as she bent over the photo. "So that's why I only have the one. And this one's fading, pretty soon, I won't be able to see it anymore."

She seemed so sad and House felt a tug on his heart. He wanted to do something for her, but didn't want to reveal what he had already done. "Hey, I got an idea. Let me have it."

Issy handed it to him and followed him as he moved to the computer. He asked her for a beer and while she is in the kitchen, he pretended to scan it in. By the time she returned with his beer, he just opened the previously saved file and showed it to her. "Ta-da! It's saved forever now, or until the computer dies anyway."

When she saw the photo's image on the computer screen, Issy seemed overwhelmed with emotion. She covered her mouth with both hands, as if to stifle the sobs that threatened, judging by the tears that were filling her eyes. Suddenly she threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss. "Thank you so much."

Feeling rather abashed by her gratitude, he covered it up by giving her a one-armed hug. "Ah, it's nothing. I'll e-mail it to you and then you'll have a copy on your laptop too. You know, sometime, we could take it to a photo shop and they might be able to restore it, you know, brighten up the colors again."

Her eyes got as big as saucers. In a tiny voice, she asked: "Really? They can do that?"

There was something about the child-like innocence of her words that really got to him. He stuffed those feelings down and he answered in a nonchalant manner: "Well, there's no guarantees but it's possible. In the mean time, I've got some acid-free photo pages. Let's put it in one of those to minimize any further damage."

House tore out a blank page from one of his photo albums. He removed her photo from the scanner and slipped it into the page.

Shyly she said: "Thank you. That's so nice of you."

House smirked: "Babe, I'm never nice."

She clutched the photo to her chest and said: "Yes, you are. You just like to hide it. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me."

She marched off to the bedroom to put the photo away. House watched her go, shaking his head. After all that had happened last night, she still thought he was _nice_? Life had really been a shit-can to her, if she thought he was nice.

At least, she seemed to want to ignore the events of last night. That was fine with him. He liked the idea of not talking about it, putting it behind them and moving forward.

He flicked the TV back on and when Issy returned to the living room, he looked up at her and said: "How 'bout a beer?"

She gave him a smile: "You bet."

As she turned to go into the kitchen, House smiled. Everything seemed back on track.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

After dinner, House watched TV while Issy cleaned up the kitchen as per their usual routine. He was only half paying attention to the show as he pondered the events of the evening and one particular article that he had read today.

Dinner had been delicious, homemade Beef-a-roni, nothing fancy but very beefy and very tasty. Naturally he had seconds, which pleased her as usual. They made casual conversation; she told him about her day and he amused her with the two funnier clinic patients that he had had. He said nothing about the two young girls that he had seen in clinic.

She had smiled at him, a lot. Her eyes sparkled and she frequently touched his arm as he spoke. There has been a nice lip-lock before she went off to do the dishes. House knew those cues; they promised sex later. After what had happened last night, how could she want to have sex with him again so quickly? That's when one particular article came to mind. In it, a psychologist was explaining why a child, rescued from an abusive home, would act out sexually.

"Victims of repeated sexual assault often become unable to interpret affection. They come to think of themselves as something that exists only for other people's pleasure. If you, as the foster parent, are kind to the child, the child might offer herself to you, possibly in exchange for your kindness, or even for your protection. After all, you are protecting her from the people who had hurt her. You are giving her things yet asking for nothing in return. She can think of no other way to thank you. She's had it beaten into her head so many times that she is only good for one thing and even though she doesn't want to believe it, deep down, she does."

The author had gone on to talk about a four-year-old patient of his who had been raped by her father and her uncle. Removed from the home and placed into a loving foster situation, her new family had taken her out for ice cream. The child had never had it before. Apparently she found it so delicious that she wanted to thank her new parents for the wonderful treat, so she lifted her dress and pulled down her panties. The child had had to learn that a simple _thank you_ was sufficient.

House had had to stop reading after that. _A four-year-old?_ Christ! People were sick. He'd had a hard enough time in the clinic today with those two young girls, imaging that at their age, Issy was already being raped by her stepfather. Because no matter what she said, no matter how much she thought she had gone along with him, it had been rape. A child that age can't give consent in any state of the union and that constituted rape.

So why did Issy want sex tonight? Was she trying to make up for last night? Did she think she owed him because he listened to the horror story that was her childhood? Or was it the fact that he was paying her to be here, in essence, paying her to screw him? Did she think that she was just a whore to him?

Probably she did, especially after last night. He had been brutal to her. There had been no essence at all of 'girlfriend' sex. He wondered if she was still bleeding and if he should even ask her that question or would it just embarrass her more? She would probably rush to reassure him that she was fine and ask if he wanted to do it again. Well, that wasn't happening. He would never force himself on her again. If he wanted to have the illusion of a girlfriend, he needed to treat Issy like one. If he had hurt Stacy like that, she would have smacked the crap outta him and possibly even filed assault charges on him. And he would have deserved it too.

He glanced towards the kitchen again; Issy was humming a song as she wiped the countertops. She seemed kinda happy here. Things had been going along fairly well until last night and judging from Issy's current behavior, she seemed to want to just put last night behind them. He wondered what her life had been like after she had run away and how had she survived. He wanted to know more about her, but tonight was not the night to ask those questions.

Tonight he just wanted her next to him. Maybe they'd have sex, maybe they would just hold each other, but he needed her closeness. He craved her warmth.

He called into the kitchen: "Hey babe, got any homework tonight?"

Issy folded the dishtowel and draped it over the wooden dowel. "Nope. All done."

Patting the sofa cushion next to him, he said: "Watch TV with me?"

"Sounds good. Want another beer?"

He waggled his empty at her and she opened the refrigerator door. She grabbed two bottles of Grolsch and sat down next to him. After a few minutes, he draped his arm across the back of the sofa and pulled her closer to him. She let out a small giggle and snuggled into his embrace.

House kissed her temple and rested his cheek on top of her head. This was just what he wanted, drinking a beer and watching TV with his girlfriend.

Around 10PM, House noticed that Issy had dozed off, head resting heavily against his shoulder. He longed for the ability to be able to pick her up and carry her to bed, but that was a pipe dream.

He gently kissed her awake. "Hey, babe, let's get you to bed."

Issy rubbed her eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep."

House said ruefully: "You didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

She shrugged: "Neither did you."

"Yeah, well, I got to sleep later than you did. C'mon, let's go brush our teeth."

In the bathroom, the door to the medicine cabinet was ajar, the Preparation H in plain sight. Issy quickly shut it and looked rather embarrassed as she set about putting toothpaste on her brush.

He waited to ask the question until they had both brushed their teeth. "Babe, does your butt still hurt? Are you still bleeding?"

He saw a slight tremble in her lower lip before she ducked her head, apparently finding something fascinating to stare at on the floor.

He gently tilted her head up so that he could see her eyes. She bit her lip to stop the trembling, but he could see the fear in her eyes.

Quickly, she said: "It's fine."

He cupped her face with both hands and spoke as gently as he could. "Tell me, baby. Did it bleed more today?"

Tears filled her eyes. "I, I had t-to ta-take a d-dump and it b-bled a little b-bit then."

_Damn it!_ "Did it hurt when you took the dump?"

She whispered: "A little."

He pulled her into his arms and held her tightly against his chest, all the while cursing himself for being such an ass to her.

Her voice was muffled, but he could have sworn he heard her say: "Please don't be mad."

His blood ran cold. He had hurt her, and yet she's afraid that he'll be mad at her. This was so fucked up. Christ, if he could have just five minutes alone with her stepfather, bad leg or no, he'd beat the crap outta him. His cane would find a home where the sun didn't shine.

Responding in the same gentle tone, he said: "I'm not mad at you. I am mad at myself for hurting you. I let my father get to me and I took it out on you."

He kissed the top of her head. "Baby, let me take a look. I need to see how bad the tear is."

Issy's whole body started trembling: "No! No, it's f-fine, really."

He gently stroked her back. "Come on baby, let me look at it."

She shook her head violently.

"I won't hurt you. I just need to see how bad it is. I don't want it to heal badly or get infected."

After a few minutes of gentle persuasion, House convinced her to let him examine her. They walked back into the bedroom. Issy stripped off and laid down on the bed, her face buried into a pillow. She flinched when House touched her butt and he cursed himself again. Her hands were fisting the sheets and her body was tensed as if preparing for a blow.

_That bastard used to beat her. This was how he did it, making her lie down, naked, on the bed. Had he raped her up the ass too?_

House gently stroked her back for a moment, trying to ease her tension. In a soft voice, he said: "Issy, I'm going to take a look now, OK?"

Her only answer was a nod.

He gently parted her butt cheeks and took a look. There was a small tear, small enough that it should heal without any medical intervention.

He imparted that information to her: "There's a small tear. I think it will heal OK. You should take a stool softener for a week or so; that will help. I've got some in the medical cabinet you can take. Warm sitz baths might feel good and I've got some better ointment than Preparation H. It's in my backpack. I'll be right back."

He limped as quickly as he could to the front closet and back to the bedroom. Issy had not moved, but she did lift her head when he walked back into the room. He held up the tube: "Proctocream-HC. Good stuff. Use it twice a day and reapply it after you take a crap."

She looked at him blankly. "You got that today? For me?"

House shrugged and mumbled: "Thought I might try it on my hemorrhoids, maybe it will work better for me than Preparation H."

"And you just happen to decide to try it today, of all days?"

He shrugged again and said: "Relax your gorgeous butt and let me put this on you."

Color rose in her face. "I can do it."

"Issy, I've seen your butt, I've touched your butt and I'm a doctor. I can apply it for you tonight and then you can take care of business starting tomorrow."

She relaxed back into the pillow, allowed him to separate her butt cheeks again and apply the ointment. House dabbed it on gently, then limped into the bathroom to wash his hands. He left the tube on the vanity for her to use in the morning.

When he returned to the bedroom, Issy was already under the covers. House stripped off and climbed into bed, pulling Issy into his arms. She snuggled closely to him and whispered: "How can I make you happy tonight?"

_Christ, despite what he had done to her and the pain in her butt, she was offering herself to him. Did she feel that she owed him?_ House was confused; he was still pissed at himself for what he had done to her and he didn't want her having sex with him because she felt she owed him, despite the fact that he was paying her to be his girlfriend. He liked it best when she was as equally horny for him as he was for her and he sensed that wasn't the situation tonight.

He kissed her forehead and then brushed his lips against hers. "You already did."

She gave him a puzzled look. "I did?"

He gave her another kiss. "Yep. Let's get some sleep."

House reached over, turned out the light and then wrapped his arm around her again. Issy started to flip over into the spoon position that they usually slept in, but House stopped her. "This way is nice too. Can you sleep like this?"

She snuggled deeper into his embrace and sighed: "Sure."

He kissed her forehead again. "Sleep well."

"You too."

**A/N: The reference to the case about the four-year-old is sadly true. I read it a long time ago in a psych book, and for obvious reasons, it stuck with me. Unfortunately it was so long ago that I cannot give the proper credit to the reference. Thank you for sticking with the story through these difficult parts.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23 **

As he sat at his desk Friday morning, he realized that he had not actually apologized for being so brutal to her. He actually wasn't very good with those two little words; besides anyone could say them. He preferred to make his amends in a more concrete fashion.

He walked out on his balcony as he pondered his options. _Candy? Flowers?_ _Jewelry? What would Wilson do?_ He had lots of practice with apologies. He had cheated on two of his three wives; each one of them had thought that Wilson neglected them by spending way too much time with House. What had Wilson done to make up?

House snorted in disgust. Wilson had never in his life done anything as horrible as what he had done to Issy. How could he expect her to forgive him when he wasn't sure if he could forgive himself? He had treated her like a whore, which probably only served to further cement in her mind that that's what she was.

A slow smile crossed his face as an idea came to mind. He had treated her like a whore, now it was time to treat her like a girlfriend. He would take her on a date. He shook his head ruefully. _A date_. Crap, he hadn't been on a date since the time Cameron blackmailed him into taking her out as a condition for returning to his team after the whole Vogler fiasco, and that had been more than two years ago. Of course, that hadn't been a 'real' date; it had been a blackmail date, but it was the closest thing to a real one that he'd been on in years. He actually hadn't gone out with anyone since Stacy's departure; there had only been hookers and bar hook-up one-night stands. After Stacy, he had not wanted any emotional entanglements; he had preferred to keep his encounters with the opposite sex on a strictly physical level. Until now.

As much as he tried to pretend that things with Issy were strictly a business arrangement, he knew that it wasn't true. He liked having her around. He was enjoying this whole 'girlfriend' fantasy and had already wondered what life would be like in June when their deal ended. He closed his eyes and gave himself a mental kick in the ass. It was only October; he should worry about June when it got here. Now, where to take Issy?

He had taken Cameron to Café Speleto, which had been a nice place but had unfortunately closed down. Just as well, it would be too weird to take Issy to the same place anyway. He wanted to take her to someplace nice, but Ruth Chris was definitely out. Finally he decided on the Witherspoon Grill. It had great food, a full bar and a nice atmosphere. He called and made a reservation for 7:00 and then sent Issy a text message. He would have preferred to surprise her, but he didn't want her to go home and start cooking.

When Issy took a 5-minute bathroom break, she checked her cell phone. It had vibrated in her pocket 30 minutes ago, but she had been in the middle of starting an IV so she couldn't deal with it at that time. She pulled it out and read the message. Then she had to read it again to make sure that she hadn't dreamed it.

"_No cooking tonight. We're going out."_

Going out? Like out to dinner? He was going to take her out to dinner after everything that had happened? Although last night had been pleasant, he hadn't wanted any sex, and that worried Issy. She was concerned that he might not want to have sex with her again after everything that she had told him. And if he didn't want to have sex with her, why would he want to keep her around? Well, of course, he still wanted to win the bet, but Issy didn't understand why he didn't just find a real girlfriend. He had enough great attributes that it seemed like it should be a no-brainer for him to find someone. Why would he want to keep a whore like her around?

She needed to get back to work so she sent a reply. _"OK, sounds great."_

She used the bathroom and while she was washing her hands, the phone beeped with another text message. _"Be ready for our date at 6:30. Dress warmish. We're taking the bike, but it's not a long ride."_

Issy gasped. A _date_? He was taking her on a real date, not just catching a bite? Confusion filled her mind. Why would he take her on a date? Was he going to drop the bomb over dinner that he wanted her to move out and wanted to do it in a nice setting so that it wouldn't seem so bad?

She dropped the phone in her pocket without sending a reply and hurried back to her duties. Maybe it wasn't that; maybe he just wanted to eat out for a change. Maybe Wilson was going to be there with a date and he wanted the two of them to make an appearance. If he specifically said that they would be taking the bike, she figured that he had a particular restaurant in mind. Maybe he just wanted one last ride before the weather got too cold. Her mind went on overload with all the possible hidden meanings buried in that simple text message.

Finally Issy told herself to put it out of her mind for now. She had work to do. Over lunch, she'd think about what to wear on their date, because she wanted to look her best tonight. If she looked enticing enough, maybe he'd want to have sex. If they had sex, hopefully it would mean that he was going to let her stay.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

House had no patient and he was bored out of his mind. After making the dinner reservations, he googled The Witherspoon Grill to check out their menu. He was perusing the selections when Wilson strolled in.

He looked over House's shoulder and commented: "I was going to ask if you wanted to eat lunch in the cafeteria, but I see you have somewhere much fancier in mind."

"Yeah, I'm taking Issy here tonight. Just checking out the menu to see if they still serve that dry-aged Delmonico."

"Not up to a repeat appearance at Ruth Chris, huh?"

House rolled his eyes and closed the page. "Let's go to lunch. You're buying, cuz I'm dropping a wad on dinner tonight."

Wilson mumbled: "Like you need an excuse for me to buy."

They left his office and headed to the elevator, entering an empty car when the doors opened. After punching the button for the ground floor, Wilson said: "So, a nice romantic date with Issy tonight, huh? Making amends for that not so lovely dinner with your parents?"

House stared at the numbers as they rode down. "Something like that, Wilson."

"Gift shop just got in a new shipment of flowers. The roses look really good."

House tapped his cane against the floor and made a mental note to pick some up on his way out today. "I'll take that under advisement."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Issy hurried home after work. Foregoing her run, she took a quick shower and washed her hair. After putting on a black lacy bra and matching panties, she stood in the closet and stared at her clothes, trying to decide what to wear. It was a date and she wanted to look nice, but they were taking the bike and she also needed to be warm. She was concentrating so hard that she didn't hear him enter the bedroom.

He smiled as he watched her flip through the hangars. Women could never decide what to wear. He looked her up and down with a small smile on his face. Then he let out a little cough: "That outfit's lovely, but I think you might be a bit cold on the bike with it."

She turned to face him. "Oh, I can't decide what to wear. Is this a fancy place?"

He shook his head: "Naw, it's casual. I wouldn't take you somewhere fancy on the bike."

He held out his arms. "C'mere, I need my kiss."

Issy ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. He embraced her tightly and they shared a passionate lip-lock. A sigh escaped his mouth, as they broke apart. He planted another kiss on her lips and then said: "I'm going to take a quick shower and then get dressed."

Issy nodded and House walked out of the bedroom. It took her another five minutes but she finally decided on her nice pair of black wool slacks and a burgundy colored turtleneck sweater. She pulled on some black knee high socks and her black boots. When House vacated the bathroom, she scooted back in there to apply some light makeup and fluff up her hair. By the time she returned to the bedroom, he was dressed in black jeans, and a black button-down shirt over a black tee.

She took a quick intake of breath. "You look very handsome."

He gave her that smile, the one that went all the way to his eyes. He took two steps towards her and picked up her hand, pressing it to his lips. "And you look gorgeous. Are you ready to go?"

Issy nodded; House took her hand and led her back to the living room. She let out a loud gasp when she saw the dozen red roses in a glass vase sitting on the coffee table.

Her hand pointed shakily to the coffee table. "What are those?"

Amused at her reaction, he scrunched his face up in faux concentration. "Those are flowers; I believe that this particular species is referred to as roses."

Her voice was at a higher pitch than usual. "What are they doing here?"

House's amusement faded. Issy wasn't enchanted by the flowers, if anything, she looked downright terrified. Slowly he said: "I bought them for you. I thought you'd like them"

Issy walked over to the coffee table and stuck her nose in one of the roses. It was a lovely scent. She thought of all the times that she had drawn rose bushes next to her cottages. A dozen red roses in a glass vase must have set him back a lot of money. Why would he get these for her _and_ take her out to dinner? There could only be one reason and it chilled her to the bone.

Her voice trembled as she said: "You're kicking me out, aren't you?"

"_What?_ How did you jump to that conclusion from a bunch of flowers?"

Her arms were crossed over her chest and her jaw trembled slightly. "Roses _and_ dinner? That's a lot of money that you're spending on me. Why would you do that, unless you're trying to let me down easy? Flowers, dinner and then _oh, by the way, babe, you need to find a new place to live_."

He stared at her for a moment and then asked: "Do you want to move out?"

She turned away from him, hiding her face. He had to strain to hear her words. "No. I just figured that after everything I told you, you'd not want me around any more. Not that I blame you or anything."

Again he found himself amazed by her low self-esteem. He had hurt her, brutalized her and yet, she thought that he was kicking her out just because she had been victimized by her stepfather. She should have been the one wanting to leave him after what he had done to her.

He took a step closer to her. "I don't want you to go."

She turned and looked at him. "You don't?"

Again he moved closer to her. "No, I don't."

Issy looked confused. "But the flowers? Dinner?"

He shrugged: "It's been kind of a rough week, hasn't it? I thought that this would just be, uh, nice. It's the kinda thing a guy does for his girlfriend when she's had a bad week."

Issy blinked rapidly and House wondered if she was trying to suppress tears.

"They are really beautiful, Greg. I love roses."

He smirked: "You know, when your boyfriend gives you flowers, you're supposed to give him a big thank you kiss."

He held out his left arm and waited for her response. He didn't have to wait long, as she smiled and stepped into his embrace. She kissed him soundly on the lips and said: "I'm sorry I was being such an idiot. I just didn't know what to think. No one has ever given me flowers before. But they are really lovely. Thank you so much."

He held her tightly, his lips brushing her hair, thinking that it was a shame that no one had ever given this gorgeous creature flowers before. Maybe one day, after she'd been a nurse for a couple of years, her self-esteem would grow and she'd feel like she deserved more than just the crumbs from under the table. In the mean time, he would do his best to treat her as well as she treated him.

He bussed her cheek: "Hope you're ready for dinner, cuz I'm starving."

She gave him a genuine smile. "Let's go."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

It was a short ride to the restaurant, but there was a nip in the air. They both wore their leather jackets and gloves and House was glad that his body blocked a lot of the wind for Issy. She gripped him tightly around the waist, her breasts pressing into his back and his cock twitched at the thought of getting naked with her later. Their previous conversation still nagged at him, but he didn't know what else to say to her. Her self-esteem had taken a brutal beating at such a young age, and he certainly wasn't the one with the magic words to make it all better. At least she seemed to relax once she realized that he wasn't kicking her out. Roses and a nice dinner didn't really make up for what had happened the other night, but he figured it was a step in the right direction.

Issy felt almost giddy. Greg said that he wasn't kicking her out, that he had bought the flowers and was taking her to dinner because he thought it would be _nice_. This was an actual real _date_, not just a lead-in to a letdown. She sighed and pressed closer to Greg's back. Riding on the motorcycle was so sensual with her breasts pressed into his back and her thighs wrapped around his hips and the intoxicating scent of their leather jackets. She had high hopes for 'boyfriend' sex tonight and that would seal the deal as far as she was concerned. If he was willing to have sex with her again after all that she had told him, it was a certainty that he was keeping her.

They were seated right away. As they looked over the menu, Issy said shyly: "This is a really nice place, Greg. You must think I'm such a rube that I haven't been anywhere. You've been all over the world."

"The consequences of growing up a military brat. The opportunities will come your way, baby. You'll see. Now, what would you like to drink? I was thinking about a bottle of Merlot to go with dinner but would you like a Scotch or something else?"

"No, the wine sounds fine."

House ordered a bottle of Merlot from the hovering waiter and then they returned to scrutinizing the menu.

Suddenly he asked: "Hey, do you like fried calamari?"

Issy shook her head. "I don't know. I've never had that."

"Oh, you don't know what you're missing. We'll get that for an appetizer and if you don't like it, we'll get something else. Now, you are _not_ to order the cheapest thing on the menu."

Issy opened her mouth to protest, but House plowed on. "I knew what you were doing the other night. You were going to order the chicken because it was the cheapest thing on the menu. That's very thoughtful of you, but completely unnecessary. I want you to order whatever you want to eat and don't look at the right hand side of the menu."

She blushed: "OK."

After a few minutes of silence while they perused the menu, Issy piped up: "Greg?"

"Yeah?"

"I'd like the eight oz filet mignon with red skinned smashed potatoes."

"That sounds good. I'm going for the dry-aged Delmonico with a baked potato. Let's split an order of onion rings too."

"OK."

After a moment's pause, she spoke again. "Greg?"

He covered his mouth with the menu to hide his smile. "Yeah?"

"It's not the cheapest thing on the menu, but it's not the most expensive either."

He tilted his head and looked at her. "Is it what you want to eat?"

She nodded shyly. "Yes, please."

"Then it's just right, baby bear."

She started giggling at the term and was still laughing when the waiter arrived to take their order. House ended up placing her order for her, secretly pleased that she seemed to be enjoying herself so much.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

It turned out that Issy loved the fried calamari. House chuckled inwardly at her enthusiastic response to the new food. In some ways, she was just like a little kid, diving headlong into new things and enjoying them with an eagerness that most people lost around once they hit the hormonally challenged teen-age years. But Issy had had an even stranger childhood than he had, so perhaps it wasn't surprising that part of her was stuck at a certain emotional age. At least this part of her was stuck on a good age and he enjoyed her reactions.

To House, this meal felt more like a date than the time he had taken her to the Italian place. Perhaps it was the fact that he had actually planned it and made reservations; perhaps it was just his earnest desire to show her a nice time after being such an ass to her. He wanted to put those events behind them and get his 'girlfriend' fantasy back.

After the appetizer plate had been removed and they waited for the next course, House noticed that Issy looking down at her hands and biting her lip. He found it rather humorous, that he lived and slept with this woman, yet out on a date, they now found it difficult to make conversation.

House remembered Wilson's dating motto. _'Complement her earrings and her shoes and then move on to D.H.A.; her dreams, hopes and aspirations'._ He had already told her that she looked great, so he decided to move on from there. He reached across the table and took her hand. She lifted her head and gave him a shy smile.

Just as he was opening his mouth to ask her about her plans after she became a nurse, she blurted out: "Tell me more about the places you've been."

He deftly turned the conversation back to her. "Do you want to travel after you finish school?"

She gave a little shrug. "I'd like to, one day."

"Where would you like to go?"

"I don't really know. I've never been anywhere, and, there's just so many places."

Her voice trailed off and she bit her lip again. House was beginning to pick up on her little tics. Biting her lip meant she was unsure about speaking her mind and her next statement would probably be prefaced with _'you'll think this is stupid, but'._

He squeezed her hand. "Close her eyes."

She immediately complied.

"It's five years from now. You have a good job as a nurse. You've got your own house and a dog. You've got some extra money in the bank and you're going to take a two-week vacation. Where are you going?"

The response was immediate. Without opening her eyes, she whispered: "Paris".

_Ah-ha. A dream._ He pounced on the new topic.

"And why Paris?"

"Well, you'll think this is silly, but I took French in high school. I had almost three years of it, before I, you know, dropped out. I really like the language; it's so beautiful. In fact, after I finish nursing school, I'd like to take French language classes again."

She bit her lip again.

He replied in what he hoped was an encouraging tone: "That's great. You wanna take some classes so you can talk to people when you visit, right?"

She nodded.

"And what do you want to see in Paris? Stuff like the Eiffel Tower?"

Her eyes grew wide. "The Louvre. The Musée d'Orsay. The Jeu de Paume. The Pompidou Center."

Her voice became more animated as she spoke. "I want to see all the fabulous art museums in Paris. There are so many of them. The _'Mona Lisa'_ is there. Picasso has a whole museum. The Musée Marmottan has more than 100 Monet's. I used to go to the Met."

She stopped abruptly and looked embarrassed. Her eyes dropped to the table and she seemed to retreat within herself.

Intrigued with the abrupt change, House said: "Issy. Go on. You used to go to the Met? You mean, the Metropolitan Museum in New York?"

She nodded.

"When did you go to the Met?"

Still staring at the tabletop, she replied in a voice just above a whisper: "When I lived there."

"When you?"

Then it came back to him. After she had run away, she said she had lived on the streets on New York for a while. That was the part of her story that he hadn't heard yet. He wanted to know how she had lived, what she had done to survive, but he also knew that it couldn't be a good story, otherwise she wouldn't be looking so embarrassed right now.

Tonight was not the night to press for details. He wanted tonight to be nice and relaxed. In a casual tone, he said: "So you used to go to the Met when you lived in New York? That is a great museum. They got all that Egyptian art there."

She perked up again: "Oh, yes, I loved going to that particular gallery. The statues were so amazing and I loved that big temple that they have in there. You must tell me more about when you lived in Egypt. It just seems so exotic. Did you ever see a mummy?"

Her eyes implored him and as much as he wanted to find out more about her, he accepted the change of topic and told her more about his mummy search when he had lived in Egypt at age 12.

The waiter brought their food and they dug in. Issy raved over her food and House swiped a couple of forkfuls of her smashed potatoes. He liked watching her eat; she didn't eat like a typical girl, always worried about her weight. Issy dug right in and ate with gusto. He told her more stories about Egypt and kept the conversation light for the rest of dinner.

To Issy's delight, the date was going really well. She had slipped up one time when she started talking about art museums, but she had caught herself and managed to change the subject back to Greg. She knew he wanted to know more about her life, but she didn't want to tell him, at least not tonight. Issy wanted tonight to be more about Greg and making him happy, happy enough to let her continue living with him.

When the waiter had cleared their table and enquired about dessert, House asked: "May I order for us?"

Issy nodded her approval.

"Please bring the lady a 'Witherspoon'. I'll have an Irish coffee and we'll share a piece of the chocolate cake."

He hurried off to fulfill their orders.

Issy asked: "So, what's a 'Witherspoon'?"

House smiled: "It's a coffee cocktail. They make really good ones here. The one I ordered for you has Godiva chocolate liqueur, Bailey's Irish cream and coffee. Mine is just Jameson whiskey with coffee."

"Oh, sounds delicious."

It was obvious from the ecstatic look on Issy's face that she was enjoying her drink. They fed each other bites of cake, and House had forgotten how sensual an experience that could be. Watching Issy's mouth accept the forkful of cake and licking the icing off her lips sent his hormones into overdrive and his cock twitched in his pants, urging a quick departure from the restaurant. He suppressed his desires long enough to finish the cake and linger over their coffees as he didn't want to rush their date. Finally they had finished and strolled back out into the cool night. Before Issy could put on her helmet, House pulled her into his arms and kissed her. She tasted of chocolate and of her own distinct flavor. His excitement built as his tongue explored her mouth; his hands slipped down to her ass to press her closer to his growing erection.

A rough voice yelled: "Get a room!"

They broke apart, laughing. He kissed her again and then whispered: "Shall we go home?"

Her answer came out as a sigh. "Yes."


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

The temperature had dropped even more, but it was a short ride home. Once they were inside, he asked Issy to pour them both a cognac while he put away their jackets and helmets. He put on an Etta James album and they settled in on the couch, sipping their cognac with House's arm draped around Issy's shoulders. Before long, the glasses were on the coffee table and their lips were planted on each other's. Issy shivered with pleasure as he ran his hands up under her sweater, caressing her bare back. His lips trailed over her jaw to her ear. After taking a moment to nibble gently on her earlobe, he pulled down the neck of her sweater so that he could kiss her neck. Issy sighed and pressed into his touch. His warm breath on her neck sent electrical charges straight to her groin.

House mumbled: "Ummm, this sweater gotta go. It's in my way."

"K."

Between them, they managed to pull her turtleneck off while maintaining as much physical contact as possible. She knelt on the couch, straddling his lap and pressed his face into the valley between her breasts. He rubbed his scruff on her tender skin and then tilted his head up. Her lips crashed down on his and their tongues tangoed. His hands squeezed her ass while she snaked one hand between their bodies to caress his cock through his jeans.

Finally House groaned: "Issy, we better take this to the bedroom before my dick's so hard that I can't walk."

She giggled and playfully tugged his arm, helping him off the couch. Once they were in the bedroom, he placed her in a seated position on the bed, and wiggled his hand, indicating that she should give him her foot. She lifted her right foot into his hand and he pulled her boot and sock off. After taking care of the left foot in the same way, he then unzipped her pants and tugged them off of her. Clad only in her black lacy bra and panties, Issy shivered, partially from the cool air and partially from the look of desire in Greg's eyes. He scooped her up in his arms and held her tightly for a moment. Then he took one careful step and gently placed her on the bed with her head on the pillow. After he took a moment to spread her hair out over the pillow, he stepped back and let his eyes wander up and down her body as he slowly unbuttoned his shirt.

Issy whispered: "Would you like a little help with that?"

"No, just lay there and look gorgeous for me."

With his eyes locked on hers, he quickly stripped and climbed into bed next to her. She rolled on her side to face him. At first, they just kissed tenderly while their hands gently caressed each other. As their passion built, House popped the clasp on her bra, slipped the straps off her shoulders and tossed it aside.

He cupped her breasts and said with a tone of awe in his voice: "Hello, girls. You're looking gorgeous tonight."

Issy's giggle turned into a gasp as his mouth found one of her nipples. As his tongue flicked and teased the nipple in his mouth, his thumb mimicked his actions on the other one. After he released that nipple, he rubbed his scruff in the valley between her breasts before leaning up to plant a tender kiss on her mouth. Her fingers tangled in his hair and urged him ever closer. He tasted of coffee and cognac and his own uniqueness that Issy couldn't get enough of, and she sighed when he pulled away.

Her slight disappointment at the loss of contact did not last long. Again his lips found their way to her breasts and he licked and tasted them until she thought she would scream from the pleasurable sensations. She tried to return the caresses, but he shook his head and placed her arms back on the bed, silently instructing her to lay back and just let him do his thing.

He kissed his way down her body until he reached the top of her black lacy panties. Inch by inch, he peeled them off of her, kissing each new bit of exposed skin. When he had finally pulled them completely off, he settled himself between her thighs and looked up at her from beneath hooded eyes. Issy's breath hitched; she knew that look and it promised pleasure beyond her wildest imagination.

She felt his warm breath on her clit right before his tongue made first contact. Her breath became more and more ragged as he licked her slit from top to bottom. He fucked her with his tongue and then switched to using two fingers as he concentrated more and more of his licking on her swollen nub. She urged him to climb on top and fuck her, but he chuckled against her most private spot, sending more wonderful electrical charges straight to the pleasure center in her brain and continued his lovely ministrations on her pussy. She was close, oh so close and he knew it. He always did and that just amazed her. As she urged him once again to fuck her, he curled his fingers in just the right way and stroked her G-spot while he suckled hard on her swollen clit. She fell over the edge with a loud cry, arcing her back and pushing herself even closer to his mouth. The pleasure was overwhelming and House didn't stop suckling until Issy finally begged: "No more. I can't take any more."

He chuckled and slowly withdrew his fingers. Two or three more little licks on her clit gave her lovely aftershocks of pleasure. House propped himself up on one elbow, looking rather pleased with himself. After ascertaining that she was watching, he licked his sticky fingers clean.

Issy was blown away. She was still trying to catch her breath after that long lovely orgasm and watching him lick his fingers clean of her juices was just so _hot_. Even after all these weeks of living together, it still amazed her that he seemed to really enjoy giving her pleasure.

But now it was his turn. She slipped her hands under his armpits and gently tugged him up on the bed. He chuckled and allowed her to position him to her satisfaction. She planted several kisses on his sticky face, and then proceeded to kiss her way down his body. He let out a deep hiss of pleasure when she finally took his cock into his mouth. Her tongue swirled around the head, licking up his pre-cum and then she quickly deep-throated him. He let out a pleasurable sigh and looked down to watch the sexy sight of his dick sliding in and out of her lovely mouth.

Her eyes were sparkling and her cheeks were flushed with pleasure. He could tell that she was enjoying what she was doing to him, the same way that he enjoyed giving her pleasure with his mouth. Suddenly her words from two nights ago popped into his head: _'he started putting his dick in my mouth. I really didn't like that and I cried, but he told me to stop being such a big baby and that all women did it to keep their men happy'. _

He gasped and quickly shut his eyes, but the image popped into his brain anyway. It was a much younger Issy, the size of that ten-year-old that he had seen in clinic yesterday, being forced to perform oral sex on her stepfather, tears running down her face. Then he remembered the night that he had discovered her secret, had commanded her to get on her knees and the tear tracks on her face as she tried to blow him. His self-directed anger at what he had done to her two nights ago hit him again and he could feel his erection wilting despite Issy's efforts.

Issy was confused. He had been rock hard and now he was drooping in her mouth. She redoubled her efforts but it was to no avail. His cock was soft and limp in her mouth. As she continued to suck, her eyes glanced fearfully up at him. She was positive that she must have been doing something to displease him although he had always loved her blowjobs in the past. His face was a mishmash of emotions and she couldn't read him.

He could see the fear on her face. He touched her cheek to stop her ministrations and gently eased his cock out of her mouth.

He patted the pillow next to him. "Come up here, baby."

As she squirmed up the bed, she whispered: "Greg, what did I do wrong? You didn't like that? I could."

He pulled her into his arms. "Shhhh. It's not you. It's not you."

He held her for a moment, trying to formulate the words in his mind. He didn't really want to tell her about the child in the clinic or about the disturbing images that had appeared in his mind. House just knew that he didn't want to be another of the abusive men that she had known in her life.

He held her even tighter, kissed the top of her head and said: "I don't ever want to hurt you again."

Her face was buried in his chest, but he could hear her mumble: "Y-you d-didn't hurt m-me."

He pulled back and looked down at her; she still looked scared. With his thumb, he gently caressed her cheek: "Yes, I did. I know I did and it wasn't the first time, but it will be the last. Do you know what a safe word is?"

She nodded: "They use safe words in BDSM, for when the action gets too much. The Dom isn't going to pay attention when you say _'no'_ but he will if you say _'broccoli'_ or something."

She knew more about it than he expected her to and it made him wonder if she had been exposed to that type of sexual activity, but he didn't want to ask her tonight. "That's right. You tried to stop me the other night and I didn't listen to you. I want you to have a safe word. If I ever hurt you or try to make you do something that you don't wanna do, I want you to scream that word at me until I stop."

"But. I mean, I'm supposed to do what you want, aren't I? I mean, isn't that what you're paying me to do?"

"You're my girlfriend, not my hooker-for-the-hour. Besides, did you always do everything the client wanted you to do? Didn't you ever draw the line at something?"

Issy looked down and nodded. "Yeah, I did."

"What wouldn't you do?"

"Golden showers."

"Ick! Don't worry. I'll never ask that of you."

In a sincere tone, she whispered: "Thank you."

He tilted her chin so that she was forced to look up at him. "Tell me a safe word."

She swallowed hard; he could see the fear in her eyes as she whispered: "Akron."

He nodded firmly: "Akron it is. You say that word, and I'll stop what I'm doing, OK?"

"OK."

She buried her face in his chest and he held her tightly. After a few minutes, Issy whispered: "Doc. Can I make you happy tonight?"

He wanted to tell her that she had already made him happy, but he knew that she wouldn't believe it. He had given her an orgasm and she wanted, no, _needed_ to reciprocate. And he certainly wasn't opposed to having sex with the gorgeous woman in his arms; he just hoped that the icky pictures stayed out of his head.

He pushed his hips against her. "I think Mt Gregory could use some attention."

Issy giggled; her hand slid down his body and grasped his cock. "I think he does too. Maybe he'd like some kisses."

House felt himself starting to grow in her hand. "I think he'd like that a lot."

Issy slid down his body and took him in her mouth. This time, House managed to stay focused on the present and thoroughly enjoy her ministrations. When he was rock-hard again, he rolled on his back and urged her on top on him. She eagerly climbed aboard and starting riding him. Blowing him had gotten her pussy slick with excitement again, and he entered her easily.

He loved this position. Being able to watch her bouncing breasts and finger her clit as they fucked only enhanced his enjoyment. Her movements grew quicker as her excitement swelled. When he was at the edge, he thrust up hard into her and pressed firmly on her little button, taking her over the edge with him. She came with a small cry while he moaned her name.

Afterwards, she licked his dick clean as usual. He was going to stop her or at least ask her why she always did that, but he decided to wait for another time. They had discussed enough for one night, and after the booze, the orgasm and all the yucky emotional stuff, he was just ready for sleep. When he was cleaned to her satisfaction, he pulled her into his arms, kissed her soundly and whispered: "Flip over."

She turned over to her left side so that he could spoon up to her back. He let out a sigh of contentment. With his arms wrapped around her and his soft cock nestled in the warmth of her ass, House was soon snoring in her ear.

Issy smiled when she heard that familiar little sound. She had fucked him into a coma again. Snuggling deeper into his embrace, she let out her own little sigh. Not only was he letting her stay, he seemed remorseful for what had happened the other night. Issy didn't quite get that; she still felt that he was paying her to do whatever he desired and if that included anal, so be it. She couldn't believe that he had gone so far as to give her a safe word and while she hoped that she would never have to use it, it was nice to know that he thought enough of her to give her one. She wanted to be extra good to him this weekend and do whatever he wanted to make him happy. As she dozed off, Issy decided that she'd bake him some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies tomorrow, just as a little thank you for the lovely date tonight.

They spent the rest of the weekend in domestic bliss. They made love again when they woke up on Saturday morning and then Issy made pancakes for breakfast. She baked cookies and he immediately scarfed down a half dozen of them. He referred to them as _'little pieces of heaven'_, which made her smile. That night they took a long bubble bath together and then she gave him a massage. Their lovemaking was slow and tender and they both fell asleep with contented smiles on their faces.

On Sunday afternoon, Issy made appropriate football snacks and Wilson came over to watch the Jets. The three of them ate wings and chips while they cheered the Jets on to victory. They ordered a pizza for the Eagles game, which also ended in a victory for their guys. As House and Issy crashed into bed that night, they were too tired to have sex, but were content to kiss and hold each other until they fell asleep.

As House sat at his desk on Monday morning, trying once again to hack into Cuddy's personal e-mail, he decided that things were back on track with him and Issy. Last week's fiasco seemed to be behind them and life with his girlfriend was good again. He could concentrate once more on weeding out his applicants and making Foreman miserable enough to quit. He blew out a big puff of air and gave up on Cuddy's e-mail account. Grabbing his cane, he limped off to the lecture hall. It was time to play with the kids again.

.


	25. Chapter 25

**Spoilers from S4 episode "You Don't Want to Know"**

**RAFTP Chapter 25**

The weeding out of the applicants continued. Brennan gave a heat-stroke patient thallium in order to induce paralysis and then presented the team with a positive polio test. He claimed that he had seen patients cured in third world countries with mega-high doses of IV Vitamin C, so, unbeknownst to House, they started the treatment. Shortly after the treatment was started, she regained feeling in her legs again. Brennan proclaimed a cure, but Foreman was skeptical. He took some more blood samples, figured out that Brennan had faked the positive polio test and presented the proof to House. Brennan admitted that by 'curing' an American patient, it would stimulate interest into research for a cure for polio, a disease that was no longer on the front burner amongst drug companies since the disease was now eradicated in all but third world countries. For his unethical antics, House forced Brennan to quit and thus the applicant pool was reduced to five.

House was bored. They had finished the last case four days ago. He needed a new one to continue the weeding process on his applicants. He couldn't keep all five of them forever. As he limped into PPTH that Monday morning in early November, he spotted Cuddy striding briskly towards the clinic and he slowed his forward motion, hoping not to be seen by her. Luck was with him today as she continued on her merry way without seeing the tall doctor attempting to hide behind a large potted plant.

As he watched her gorgeous ass, sheathed in a tight black pencil skirt, walk away from him, an idea formed in his mind. He barely managed to suppress an evil grin as he stabbed the elevator button with his cane.

The kids were eagerly waiting for him in the lecture hall. As House tried to explain the rules of his newly invented immunity challenge, Kutner kept interrupting him, trying to present a potential new patient. He and Cole had gone to a show in Atlantic City the previous evening. The magician had passed out almost immediately upon being submerged in a tank of water. Kutner seemed to think that it was a mysterious case, worthy of the attention of the Almighty House and his team.

It didn't seem like much of a case to House, simple cardiac arrest upon near drowning, but Kutner persisted in his presentation of the symptoms.

House briefly closed his eyes in frustration. "Fine. Go run your tests. If you're wrong, you're fired."

Kutner replied: "If I'm right, do I stay?"

"If I say no, are you going to let your patient die?"

All heads spun around and looked at Kutner. He glanced at Cole and then got up and left the room.

Everyone turned back to House as Cut-Throat Bitch eagerly asked: "So, what's the challenge?"

House answered: "The winner gets immunity _and_ gets to nominate two of your competitors. I will fire one of them."

He took note of the gleeful look on Cut-Throat Bitch's face and then went on.

"We can all applaud the doctor who's willing to break all the rules. But the real hero is the unsung doctor, toiling in anonymity, because he broke all the rules without getting caught. I need to know that you have these skills."

After a dramatic pause, he went on: "I need you. To bring me the thong of Lisa Cuddy."

He grinned inwardly at the stunned looks on their faces. "Not kidding. Thong. Cuddy. Go."

He watched their retreating backs as they slowly left the lecture hall and then he headed back to his office.

While Kutner ran tests on his patient with 13's assistance, the rest of the team schemed on how to get Cuddy's panties.

Taub tried to spill coffee on her, thinking that if she got her panties wet, that she'd have to take them off. He missed his target and only succeeding in wetting the floor and looking like a fool. Amber held a match under the smoke detector, causing the sprinklers to go off in the clinic, but Cuddy was safe and dry in her office during the deluge.

Meanwhile, all the cardiac tests came back negative on Kutner's patient. Frustrated, he went to Foreman, who suggested looking at the lungs with an MRI.

Immediately after being placed in the MRI machine, the patient started screaming and developed internal bleeding. He was rushed to surgery.

Back in the conference room, Kutner and 13 started updating House, Foreman and Cole on the patient.

Thirteen reported: "The surgeons have transfused three units of AB positive blood, but they are still searching for the source of the bleed."

Kutner chimed in: "No trauma. Could be liver disease, Vitamin K deficiency. The only thing we know for sure it's not, _nothing._"

Thirteen went on: "And we would have noticed something chronic like liver disease, it's probably an intestinal infarct."

She dropped the patient's file. With an embarrassed look on her face, she quickly scooped up the contents.

Just as she stood up, Taub and Amber walked into the room. Taub cleared his throat, pulled a pair of black lace panties out of his pocket and held them up. He announced: "Eau de Cuddy."

He tossed the panties to House who caught them with the tip of his cane.

House smirked: "These aren't Cuddy's panties. She's wearing a red bra today which means the downstairs will match."

He pointed to Amber: "Hike up your skirt."

Amber laughed: "Wow, that's rude, even for you."

"Hike it down then. You're wearing a black bra. Let's see the underwear."

Amber shook her head: "No."

House glanced between Taub and Amber: "You two cut a deal."

Amber snatched her panties off the table and said: "If you're not cheating, you're not trying hard enough."

Eyes wide, Kutner said to Amber: "So you're not wearing any underwear?"

Foreman cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Uh, there's a guy bleeding on the operating table."

House rolled his eyes. "Foreman. _She's not wearing any underwear_. Sheesh, you used to be more fun. Kutner, let me see the MRI film."

Kutner answered: "We didn't get any images. He started screaming as soon as I turned it on."

House tilted his head with increased interest. "Define soon."

Kutner replied: "Uh, I didn't even have a chance to sit down."

House grinned: "You guys ever wonder how he was going to get out of that water tank? Kutner, come with me."

House strode quickly out of the room, with Kutner on his heels.

They scrubbed up, threw on sterile gowns and walked into the operating room. The surgeon was just commenting on the lacerations in the patient's digestive tract when House approached the table.

"Ladies and gentlemen. I have nothing up my sleeve, but watch this trick closely."

He stuck his hand into the patient's abdominal cavity, poked around for a moment and then triumphantly produced a bloody key. "Ta-da! Here's the reason for the sudden pain and bleeding in the MRI machine. The giant magnet moved the key through a few organs, thus the heavy bleeding. Once he's all patched up, he'll be back to hacking his magic again."

He dropped the key onto the side table and turned to Kutner: "Now, you, disappear."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

House left the hospital around 7:30 and chuckled all the way home. He couldn't wait to tell Issy about his day.

She was just pulling dinner out of the oven when he walked in, but she set everything down and ran to greet him. She cupped his face with both hands and gave him a quick kiss before taking his things.

"Hi, how was your day?"

"A barrel of laughs, wait until I tell you, but first, c'mere."

He pulled her into his arms and crashed his lips down on hers. His hands roamed down to her ass and he gave it a gentle squeeze. He smiled against her mouth as he felt her fingers tangle in his hair. This was a nice way to come home.

Reluctantly he pulled his lips off of hers. Burying his face in the crook of her neck, he squeezed her tighter, actually lifting her a couple of inches off the floor.

"Hmmm, second, something smells good besides you. What's for dinner?"

"Lasagna and garlic bread. Have a seat and I'll bring it to you."

Issy brought him a big hunk of lasagna and two slices of garlic bread. He was starving but managed to wait until she was seated with her own plate before diving in. He gobbled his first serving and held his plate out for more. He ate the second helping more slowly, telling her about his day in between bites.

When he finished his tale, Issy said: "Wow. A key caused the bleeding. That's kinda cool that you just went into the surgery and found it."

House let out a burp and then said: "Yeah, you should have seen the look on Kutner's face when I held it up. That was priceless."

"So who's your favorite for winning the immunity challenge?"

"I don't know which one of them is cunning enough to outsmart Cuddy. That's the whole purpose of this game, to see who's clever enough to break the rules without getting caught."

Issy giggled: "What is the motto of that '_Survivor'_ TV show? Isn't it _'Outwit, outplay, outlast'_?"

That sparked a little reminder in his brain. House settled back against the couch and said thoughtfully: "Something like that. And speaking of Survivor, how did _you_ do it?"

Issy frowned and looked away from him. She started to gather the plates: "Want some dessert? I picked up a couple of cannolis at the bakery or there's some oatmeal raisin cookies."

House gently grabbed her wrist to stop her movements. "Don't try to distract me with food or sex."

Issy opened her mouth to protest, but House went on. "If dessert didn't interest me, you'd be flashing the girls at me next. I want to hear the rest of your story."

He watched as she set the dishes back down and curled up into a little ball at the far end of the couch. Her bubbly personality retreated and that of an apprehensive child emerged.

"Haven't you heard enough?"

House shook his head. "Nope, I want the whole tale."

"Your curiosity knows no bounds."

"Yeah, yeah, and it killed the cat too. I still wanna know."

Issy hugged her knees tightly to her chest and said: "OK, you can ask me one question."

"One? I wanna know the whole story."

"You get one question."

"Five."

"One."

"That's not how it works. We negotiate. You say one; I say five. You counteroffer with four."

"Two."

"Four."

"Two."

"Four."

Issy sighed: "Three."

House huffed with his victory. "Fine, three questions."

He thought for a moment, recalling exactly where she had left off in her tale.

"So you walked to the interstate and got picked up by a truck driver. What happened after that?"

"I didn't really have any idea where to go. I just wanted to get away from Akron and go somewhere that Frank wouldn't find me. The first truck driver that picked me up was heading east, so I thought I would go to New York City. I figured in a city that big, I could just get lost and no one would find me."

Issy leaned back against the couch, arms wrapped tightly around her knees. "He was a nice man; his name was Bill and he had a big white beard that made me think of Santa Claus. When I told him that, he laughed and said that he played Santa every year at Christmas. He saw my black eye and asked if I was running. I didn't answer him, but I'm sure he knew. He said that he hoped I was running _to _somewhere and not just running. I nodded so that he would think that I had somewhere to go. He was nice. He let me go in the back of his rig and sleep and then he bought me breakfast. I tried to pay but he wouldn't let me. When he needed to turn south, he stopped off at a truck stop and told me to ask around and I'd find someone going my way. Then he gave me 20 bucks, told me to hide my money in my sock so I wouldn't get ripped off and wished me well. I found another guy heading east, but he wasn't so nice. He took me all the way to Stroudsburg, but I had to give him a blowjob before he would let me out of the truck."

House exploded: "Fucking asshole. You were just a kid."

Issy shrugged: "It was just a blow job. I was just glad that he didn't want sex, cuz I didn't have any condoms. The next guy took me all the way into the city. He was gay, which was great; he didn't want any action from me."

He sneered: "What if you had been a runaway sixteen-year-old boy? Then he would have."

Issy thought for a moment and then said: "Naw, I don't think so. He didn't seem like a perv. He was pretty nice to me. When Ted dropped me off, it was right by the Port Authority Bus Station. There were all these hookers around and their pimps. He'd warned me about the pimps and told me not to believe anything they say or accept anything from them. A burger or a Coke might be laced with drugs. He told me to be really cautious about trusting anyone on the streets. He gave me _forty bucks_, which I slipped in my sock and then I climbed down from his truck. I was so scared. I didn't have a clue what I was going to do next; I didn't even know where I was going to sleep that night. I wanted to just climb back into Ted's truck and ride anywhere he was going. I felt safe with him, but it was too late. He had driven away and I'm sure he wouldn't have wanted me just hanging around anyway. I started walking up Eighth Ave and had to pass by a few hookers and their pimps. The pimps kept calling to me, telling me that they would treat me right and get me some place to live. I just ignored them, but one guy followed me all the way to 49th Street. That really scared me, but he finally gave up. I walked up Eighth Avenue to Columbus Circle and then I started walking up Broadway. After grabbing a slice of pizza, I found a Barnes and Nobles at 66th Street. It was a really big one, three stories tall. I found a quiet corner and took a nap. They woke me up at midnight when they closed the store and I walked to Central Park. Found a thick clump of bushes, crawled inside and managed to sleep a little bit more until dawn. And that was my first night in New York."

House hated to ask but he needed to know. "What did you do when your money ran out?"

Issy shrugged. "I panhandled; I took bottles and cans in for deposit."

She let out a deep sigh. "I ate out of trash cans. When the pizza joints closed for the night, they'd throw out their leftover slices so I'd try to grab some. You're not so picky when you're hungry. Sometimes I went to soup kitchens, but I was really scared of doing that. I was afraid that someone would call the cops and get me picked up because I was just a kid. So I made sure that I didn't go to the same place very often."

"One time I was walking by Jackson Hole and the burgers cooking on the grill smelled so good. I think I would have sold my right arm for one of them. So I went to the back door and asked the guy if he had any work that I could do for some food. He had me haul the grease buckets outside to the dumpster, and then I had to empty all the trashcans and wash them out. Then I cleaned the bathrooms. He gave me a big burger, some fries and ten bucks."

"Jesus! All that for ten bucks and some grub?"

"Like I could afford to be picky? Believe me, I was grateful to get that. I ate half the food then and wrapped up the rest for later. Used the cash for some badly needed tampons and a Metrocard so that I could get on the subway. I used to sleep on the subway in the wintertime. The 'A' train runs from the top of Manhattan all the way to Rockaway Beach in Queens. I'd get on, ride to the end, hop around to the other track and get back on again. I could catch two hours sleep each way and be fairly warm. Sometimes the conductor would hassle me, but then I'd just get off and wait for the next train. Some people would sleep on heating grates or in unlocked foyers, but I never felt safe doing that. In the summer, I'd go deep into the park and hide in some bushes to sleep. Or I'd sleep at Barnes and Noble's or at the library in the daytime and walk all night. It was hard on the streets. You felt like you could never really sleep; you always had to keep one eye open for the cops or a creep. There were days when I would have sold my soul for a hot shower, clean clothes and a soft bed."

"Did you ever?"

Issy interrupted him: "You've had your three questions. Actually you asked four, but I let you get away with the one about the gay truck driver and if I'd been a sixteen-year-old boy."

"But."

Issy stood up and started collecting the dishes. "No buts. I answered three questions and that's enough for tonight, Doc. It's hard for me to talk about this. It's a painful part of my life that I'd like to put behind me. I'm gonna clean up the kitchen. Just let me know if you want any dessert."

With the dishes in her hands, she headed off to the kitchen leaving House to ponder her words. Issy was a tough cookie, no doubt about it. After years of abuse and homelessness, she had somehow managed to rise above all of that and get into nursing school. A few more months and she'd have a decent respectable job and any residual fears of homelessness and poverty could be behind her. After all she had been through, House still found it amazing that she was not dead or addicted to drugs or alcohol. Her strength of character shone through, but the events of her life definitely affected her psyche, no matter how deeply she had it buried. Not that he was one to talk; he had his own issues, but at least they didn't manifest as a bad stutter. He did at least have one good friend, while she seemed to have none. He knew that it was due to the fact that she needed to hide her former occupation and wondered if that would change after she became a nurse. He didn't want to think of her as a lonely woman with only a dog to keep her company.

He shook his head; what was he doing worrying about her future? After June, she would be out of his life and what she did was her own business. He still wanted to know the rest of her story, how she ended up in New Jersey and how she got into nursing school, but that would have to wait for another night.

Noises from the kitchen indicated that Issy was almost done with the cleanup. House got up and limped into the kitchen, wrapping his arms around her from behind.

"You mentioned dessert."

She turned to face him. "Yes, we've got cannolis and cookies. What are you in the mood for?"

"What say we hide the cannoli?"

She gave him a sultry smile. "Sounds good to me."


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: More spoilers for S4 "You Don't Want to Know"**

**Chapter 26**

Over dinner the next night, House told Issy what had happened that day.

"First off, I went to see the patient and toss the key in his face. You know what he said to me? _'Oh, I forgot about that'._ Idiot! I was about to discharge him, but then he started bleeding profusely from his nose, so I had to round up the kids again. And who shows up with Cuddy's panties? Big Love, of all people!"

"Really? That's surprising. Honestly, he's the one that I thought was the least devious of them all."

"Agreed. I guess there's more to him than I thought. They were really hers, though. I ran into her in the clinic and tricked her into picking up something for me. She had on this really tight skirt and when she bent over, there was no doubt that she was sans panties."

Issy smirked: "What did you say to her?"

House chuckled: "I screeched like a girl, loud enough for the whole clinic to hear. _'Oh My God, you're not wearing_ _panties!'_ She blushed pinker than her skirt and took off running."

Issy giggled and then said: "So why was the patient's nose bleeding?"

"I sent Kutner and Taub to his lair. They found white fluffy bunnies, so I stuck him on antibiotics for tularemia. He should be fine in a couple of days."

"And now Big Love gets to nominate two people, one of whom you'll fire? Who do you think he'll pick?"

"Definitely not Kutner cuz he's his BFF. Cutthroat Bitch for sure, and then it's a toss-up between Taub and Thirteen, but I think he'd pick Taub."

Issy smirked: "And which one will you fire?"

He scrunched up the left side of his face in thought. "We'll see. Depends on my mood. Tell ya tomorrow night."

House pushed away his plate and asked: "So, do I get another three questions tonight?"

"Depends."

He eyes her suspiciously: "On what?"

Issy shrugged in a nonchalant manner: "Turn about is fair game. Wanna tell me what happened to your leg? Seems like if I'm your girlfriend, I ought to know about it."

House thought for a moment; he didn't really want to talk about his leg but she did have a point. As his girlfriend, she should know about it. It would seem weird if anyone asked her and she didn't know.

"OK. I'll tell you what happened, but I get unlimited questions tonight."

Issy's eyes widened: "Unlimited? Doc, it's a work night. I can't stay up until 3AM telling you my stupid saga."

"Will it take that long?"

"How the hell do I know what you're going to ask me? Plus _you _have to tell me _yours_."

He groused: "All right, all right. You answer my questions until I'm satisfied or until 10:30, whichever comes first. Then I'll tell you about my leg."

"OK, fine. But I need alcohol tonight."

"Pour me a double, babe."

Issy poured him a double of Maker's Mark while she got a double shot of scotch. She handed him his glass, sat down on the far end of the couch, took a sip and said: "Shoot."

This was the question he was about to ask last night when he hit his limit. "Did you ever, you know, turn tricks while you were on the streets?"

"No, believe it or not, I managed to get by without doing that. Like I told you last night, I'd go to a restaurant and more times than not, they'd give me some food for doing some unpleasant chore. Sometimes, I'd get some cash too. I'd make repeat trips to the more generous ones, but not too often as I didn't want to wear out my welcome. I'd go to the little Mom and Pop grocery stores and ask if they had any spoiled food that they were going to throw out and sometimes I'd get some bruised fruit or day-old pastries. I panhandled. I collected bottles and cans for the deposit. And the dry-cleaner guy helped me out."

House frowned: "Who was he? And how exactly did he help you out?"

"It was raining one night, and I parked myself under this awning to stay dry. I ended up falling asleep right out there in the open, which was something that I never did. I woke up from someone shaking my shoulder. It really startled me and I cried out and then the guy said: _'I'm sorry; I didn't mean to scare you. I just need to open up and you were right in front of my door._' I apologized for bothering him and started to walk away, but it was still pouring and I hesitated for a moment to leave the dry bit of sidewalk under his awning. He invited me to come inside his shop until it stopped raining and then he gave me half of his bagel. He was very nice to me and treated me like a regular person even though it was obvious that I was homeless. I helped him push up the metal grates over the windows and I swept the floor for him and he gave me five bucks. So I started dropping by once a week or so. We'd talk for a while and then he'd ask me to help him with something. He'd send me to the pizza place on the corner to get his lunch so that he wouldn't have to lock up to go himself and he'd buy me lunch too. Or he'd ask me to sweep up or take out the trash and he'd give me some money for doing that. His name was Richard and he was very nice to me. I mean, it was obvious that he didn't really need me to do those things for him; he was just being nice to help me out."

"And he never wanted sex or something from you?"

"Nope, believe it or not, he was just a genuinely nice guy. If I ever go back to New York, I'd like to look him up, you know, to say thank you. So getting back to your original question: I never hooked on the streets. I didn't start screwing for money until I started working in the strip clubs."

"Besides scrounging for money and food, how did you spend your time?"

"I walked a lot. I'd go to the library or the bookstore and read for hours, or catch a nap. I'd search out public restrooms and try to clean up as best I could. I'd go to the museums and the zoo on the free days."

House said softly: "The Met?"

Issy nodded: "Yeah, the Met was free on Thursday nights from 6 to 8PM. I loved the Egyptian gallery, but one of the guards there used to give me a hard time, so I'd go find a less frequented gallery where my presence wouldn't be so disturbing to the other patrons."

She shrugged: "You live on the streets, you smell pretty bad."

"Were you by yourself all the time? Did you meet any other homeless people and hang out with them?"

Issy sighed. Her expression grew sadder, but then she briskly rubbed her face with her hands and seemed to pull herself together. "I was alone most of the time."

House tilted his head and stared at her intently. "But?"

Issy looked down and whispered: "There was one guy. We met behind Famous Famiglia on 97th Street, waiting for the guys to throw out the end-of-the-night pizza. They only threw out one box that night; we both grabbed for it and wouldn't let go. So we decided to share. We took the pizza into the park and shared it _al fresco_ while sitting on a bench. It was nice to have someone to eat with, have a conversation with. Besides Richard, I never really _talked_ to anyone. Asking for spare change isn't exactly a conversation, you know? Bobby and I just kinda connected. We talked for a long time about all kinds of stuff. Even though it was early June, it was cool that night and he offered to share his sleeping bag with me."

House nodded knowingly. "He wanted to bang you."

Issy shook her head. "Not that night. We just cuddled up in the sleeping bag together to keep warm. He wrapped his arms around me and it was nice."

She paused and then went on: "I felt safe with him. We started hanging out together and after a few nights, we did start having sex."

In a gentle tone, House asked: "What was it like for you, after, you know? Your other experiences?"

Her eyes took on a faraway look. "It was nice. We took it slow and well, I came to the realization that sex can feel good too."

"So what happened to him?"

"He, hum, he turned tricks. He'd do blowjobs for the chicken hawks down on Ninth Avenue. I tried to convince him that we could survive without him doing that and he stopped for a couple of weeks. But then things got tight and he started going back down there again. One night, there was a big bust and he got caught up in it. I never saw him again. He was only seventeen like me, so I guess he was either sent to juvie or they sent him back home."

"Where was home for him?"

"Somewhere in Indiana. His father used to beat the crap out of him and his mother all the time. When he got big enough to fight back, his old man pulled a knife on him, slashed his upper arm and told him to get out and never come back. So he left home at fifteen and ended up hooking in New York."

"So he was your boyfriend?"

She nodded and said softly: "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, we'd only been together two or three months, but I'd gotten used to his company and it was lonely without him. I looked for him for a long time after the bust. I kept hoping he'd get released and come looking for me. So I kept going to our usual haunts and I even checked a few times down on Ninth Avenue, but I never saw him again."

_Jesus, could her story get any more pathetic? She finally meets a guy that she feels safe with; he turns out to be a boy whore, gets picked up by the cops and she never sees him again. No wonder she walls herself off from people. The only_ _two people she seemed to really care about disappeared without even a good-bye.  
_

"So, how did you end up in New Jersey?"

She spoke listlessly, as if her tale was taking all of the strength out of her. "After I turned 18 and I wasn't worried about getting sent back to Ohio, I tried to get a job. _Surprise_, no one wanted to hire a homeless high school dropout. I met a girl who said she was heading to Newark to work in a new restaurant. She seemed on the up-and-up, so stupid me, I tagged along. That turned out to be a prostitution ring, so I high-tailed it out of there. I found a homeless shelter and got cleaned up. They helped me get a job with a maid service. That really paid crap, but at least I had a little cash flow. Then I found a waitress job at a diner and that was better, cuz I got tips, but I still didn't make enough money to get my own place. I didn't like living in the shelter but it was better than the streets. There was no privacy, but at least I had a cot and there were showers. I left the diner when I got a job at Applebee's and I made better tips there. I also found a couple of cleaning clients on my own and they paid me cash. And I kept looking for better jobs."

"How did you end up dancing?"

"I applied for a waitress job at a club in Newark. I was only nineteen, so I was too young to serve alcohol, but old enough to dance. Go figure. I wasn't sure that I wanted to do that, but the money was good and I really wanted to get out of the shelter. The girls wore tiny bikinis and did go-go dancing on top of the tables. It wasn't so bad except for the guys pawing at you. I made friends with this one girl, Marcy and we ended up getting an apartment together. It had one bedroom and an alcove and I mostly slept in the alcove cuz she usually had a guy over. We changed clubs a couple of times mostly because Marcy wanted to find a richer clientele."

"I kept looking for some other kind of work, but since I had no high school diploma, the only thing I could find was waitressing and maid service. Then one day, I saw a bus bench advertisement: _'Didn't finish high school? No problem! Get your_ _GED with us'_. So I called them. I studied and passed my GED exam. And guess what kind of job I was qualified for then? I could work at McDonalds!"

She made a sour face. "Yeah, that was a big step up. So I kept dancing and trying to figure out what else I could do."

"When did you start providing those _extra services_ that make a man so happy?"

She blushed: "It was a few clubs back. Marcy really wanted to work at this one club called King of Diamonds because she heard that it was mostly white-collar guys that were bigger tippers. So we went there for an interview and the managers told us that some of their clients liked _extras_ and were we willing to provide them. Of course, Marcy said yes. Well, they wanted a demonstration, so we had to give them a blowjob to get the job. That was the first time I had to blow someone to get a job, but not the last. At Body Shots, not only did I have to blow the manager to get the job, but all the girls were expected to keep him and his cronies happy upon request."

"So if he walked up to you with a 'business associate', you were expected to make him happy? Did you get paid extra for that?"

She snorted. "I got to keep my job and not get the crap beat out of me. If I was lucky, the guy would give me a tip."

_Damn, with that kind of situation, any other job would look better. _

"What made you decide to be a nurse?"

She bit her lip: "You'll think this is so stupid, but I saw another bus bench advertisement. It claimed you could become a nurse in just two years. I thought: _'oh, that's great! A real job.' _What they didn't say; was that since I didn't have any college at all, I would need to get an AA degree first and _then_ do the two years of nursing school. But I got fixated on the idea of being a nurse and that being my way out, so I decided to go for it. I kept dancing cuz it was good money and it had a flexible schedule so I could go to school around work. Figured I'd been a whore for so long already, what was a little while longer? I changed clubs a couple of times, working around my school schedule, and finally ended up at Body Shots where I met you. Marcy found a sugar daddy and moved to Boston about a year ago and that's when I got my studio apartment."

She looked him right in the eyes and said: "So that's my life story, Doc. You got any other questions?"

He pondered for a moment and then shook his head.

She tilted her head at him and said softly: "Your turn."

Slowly he said: "So what do you want to know?"

"What happened to your leg? You alluded to the fact that your ex-girlfriend did that to you. What the hell did she do?"

House knocked back the rest of his bourbon before continuing. "I developed pain in my right thigh. It was diagnosed as just muscle strain, but rest and muscle relaxants did nothing for it. The pain kept getting worse. After four days, it was finally diagnosed as an infarction. By then, muscle death had already occurred. The doctors wanted to amputate my leg but I wouldn't let them. I figured if I could just ride out the pain, the electrolyte imbalance caused by the muscle death would resolve. I'd be OK _and_ I'd still have my leg. So I asked them to put me in a drug-induced coma for 48 hours to sleep through the worst of the pain. While I was out, my girlfriend, Stacy, who was also my health-care proxy, agreed to a different type of surgery. She let them cut out all the dead muscle. No one realized just how much muscle would have to be cut off and I woke up with half a thigh."

Issy's jaw dropped. "Oh my god. I can't believe she did that to you while you were unconscious. How could she do that?"

He shook his head slowly and looked away. "She thought she was saving my life. She didn't trust me enough to believe me when I told her that I'd be OK after I woke up from the coma. Seven years later, and I'm still in pain. I've got a big hole in my thigh, a permanent limp, and she's married to another man."

Issy gasped: "She left you after doing that to you? The bitch!"

He chuckled softly at her vehemence and then closed his eyes, remembering those painful months right after the surgery. "I drove her away. I was so angry and in so much pain. The pain right after the surgery was ten times worse than it is now and I had to learn to walk all over again. And there she was, the person who professed to love me, the one who did this to me, able to walk without pain. I hated her so much and I let her know it, every minute of every day. She lasted for six months before finally throwing in the towel and walking out the door."

"And she married some other guy?"

He nodded. "Yeah, he got sick a couple of years back. No one could figure out what was wrong with him and she wanted me to take him on as a patient. I ended up doing it and doing her."

Issy jaw dropped. "You did her, after everything that had happened?"

"Yeah. She said she missed me and there was a part of me that missed her too. We had lived together for five years before the infarction happened. While her husband was in the hospital, we slept together just the one time and it was comfortable, you know, like putting on an favorite pair of old shoes. I wanted her to leave him for me and when she finally decided to do so, I changed my mind. It just wasn't right. I knew we'd be at each other's throats in no time. All it would take would be a bad pain day for me and I'd be calling her every name in the book. It wasn't worth going through all that again."

He shot her a look. "So that's the story of my leg. Any other questions?"

Issy shook her head. "Not about your leg or your ex-girlfriend."

"What, then?"

Hesitantly she said: "I was wondering about your dad. He's so mean to you. I don't get it. You're a doctor; he should be so proud of you."

House snorted: "I'm not the son he wanted me to be. He wanted a little miniature Marine; what he got was a disobedient smart-mouth kid who wanted to be anything but that. He tried to beat me into shape."

Issy gasped: "He beat you?"

_Shit!_ He hadn't meant to say that. He looked at her, and while he remembered how much his own childhood had sucked, hers had been considerably worse. "Yeah, he used to beat me with his belt. That lasted until I was sixteen and got big enough to fight back. When I was small, he'd make me take ice baths when I misbehaved. When I got too big to wrestle into the tub, he started locking me out of the house so that I'd have to sleep in the yard all night. Didn't matter if it was raining or freezing cold, I still couldn't come in."

House didn't know why he had told her all of that. There was no point in rehashing past history. You couldn't change it. He did notice that she had inched closer to him while he was talking. He hoped it wasn't from pity. She couldn't possibly pity him with the kind of life she'd had. Suddenly he didn't want to talk about this any more.

"Look, I've never told anyone about my father. Wilson's had hints but that's it. I never even told Stacy."

Issy let out a deep sigh. "It's hard to talk about. I think that if the other person hasn't had similar experiences themselves, they just don't get it. When Bobby told me about his dad beating him up, I told him that I had gotten beat too, but I didn't tell him about the other stuff."

"You don't think he would have understood?"

She shrugged: "He might have, but I didn't want to take the chance of losing him."

"No one worthwhile is going to judge you for what happened to you when you were a child."

She looked at him and asked plaintively: "How do you know?"

He had no answer. They sat in silence for a few minutes. House watched Issy pick at the hem of her tee shirt. It was starting to unravel and she was making it worse. He reached out and took her hand.

"Issy. No one knows this stuff about my father."

She looked into his eyes. "I won't tell anyone, Doc. You won't tell anyone about my stuff, right?"

"My lips are sealed, babe."

She whispered: "Thank you."

She lifted his hand and rubbed it against her cheek. Her eyes closed and her expression was serene as if she was really enjoying that small contact.

'_Good touch, bad touch'_. That's what they taught the kids these days. Issy had had enough _'bad touch'_ to last her several lifetimes. Was that Bobby guy the only boyfriend she'd ever had? Had there been anyone else that she'd had good sex with? He wasn't sure why he worried about this, but he hoped that she considered most of the times with him to be good ones, even if she was getting paid for it.

"C'mere."

Issy opened her eyes and looked at him.

He patted his good leg. "C'mere."

She scooted closer and he pulled her onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and she snuggled closely, with her head resting on his shoulder. House kissed the top of her head and then rested his cheek against her hair. They sat like that for a long while, each relishing the physical contact. When House's leg finally fell asleep, he nudged her up and silently they headed off to bed together.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Spoilers from S4 "You Don't Want to Know" and "Games"**

Chapter 27

The next day was hectic and House didn't get to spend much time mulling over what Issy had told him the previous night. It was good to know her whole story and he'd give it some thought when he had the time, but it wasn't going to be today. Between a crashing patient, Thirteen's mysterious symptoms and wondering about Big Love's potential candidates, House's brain was running at 90 MPH and he had to put Issy on the back burner for now.

At 6PM, he phoned her and let her know that he was in for a long night and not to expect him any time soon. He didn't bother to tell her about the patient's new symptoms, his own need to prove to the kids that it wasn't tainted blood causing the symptoms by getting a transfusion of the same batch or the fact that the kids drugged him to take biopsy samples. He also didn't tell her about 13's interesting genetic history or the kids' attempts to bribe Big Love to let them stay. He'd tell her later, after he finally solved the case.

Issy assured him that she'd leave a plate in the fridge and keep his side of the bed warm. Just as he concluded the call, Wilson walked into his office. During the course of their conversation, House had one of his epiphanies and dashed down to radiation where Foreman was about to start the amyloidosis treatment. To House's utter amazement, sometimes it _is _lupus. Due to his malfunctioning immune system making an extra antibody, the patient had been given the wrong blood type and that had started the cascade of other symptoms. Four units of the correct type blood and some steroids would have him back hoodwinking idiots in no time.

Once the patient was stabilized and started on his new treatment, the team assembled in the lecture hall for the main event of the day. Big Love had to pick two of his team members, one of whom House would fire. It was of no surprise to anyone when he picked Cutthroat Bitch, but everyone's jaw dropped when Kutner's name was the next one to be called.

House's interest was especially piqued. He asked Big Love why he had selected Kutner.

Cole, AKA Big Love, replied: "You said I don't have to justify my picks."

House said: "No, I said you could use whatever criteria you want. It doesn't mean that I don't want to know your thought process for selecting him. Kutner was right about this being a real case, he was right about the botched transfusion and he's your BFF. You've got no reason to pick him."

House stroked his chin and went on: "But someone else does. Kutner's a liability. He electrocuted himself, lit a patient on fire, it's only a matter of time before he burns the hospital down. You made a deal with the she-devil herself. That's how you got Cuddy's underwear. She sold it to you for the right to put her choice on the block."

Cole answered: "Hey, you said to get her underwear. I got her underwear."

House sneered: "Your plan was brilliant, and, you're fired."

Cole protested: "You're all about breaking the rules."

"Her rules, not mine. The whole point of this exercise was to subvert Cuddy. You became her partner and gave her power she didn't already have. Let her greedy fingers into my cookie jar, which, sadly, is not as dirty as it sounds. Thanks for playing."

House limped out of the room, leaving the fellow applicants behind to console Big Love or in the case of Kutner, to just leave without saying goodbye. House went to his office, packed up his things and headed for home. Food and a warm sexy woman awaited him.

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Over dinner the next night, House filled Issy in on the conclusion of the case. She really was a perfect audience for him. As usual, she listened attentively and asked intelligent questions. Her eyes shone when he revealed the epiphany that solved the case and his ego was big enough to enjoy how impressed she was with his brilliance.

"That's so cool how you figured that out. And it's amazing that he didn't die from getting the wrong blood type too."

"He almost did. We manage to figure it out in time. Kutner was really close to solving it. He's a little nuts, but he is pretty smart."

"There are only four of them left now. Is Kutner on the short list?"

"I don't know yet. All four of them have advantages and disadvantages. Cutthroat Bitch is smart but I don't know if I can work with her day after day. She grates on me."

House swallowed the last bite, licked his fork and was tempted to lick the bowl. "This stew is delicious, Issy. Is there any more?"

She gave him a big smile. "Of course. Let me refill your bowl."

He watched her hips swaying as she strolled into the kitchen. After filling his belly with her delicious stew, he planned on filling a certain part of her anatomy with a favorite part of his. It had been three nights since they had played 'hide the cannoli' and he was ready for a repeat performance.

Issy returned to the living room with House's refill. As she set the bowl down in front of him, she said: "We got our next assignments. Can you guess where I get to rotate to next week?"

He paused with the fork in his hand. "Oh, no. Don't tell me."

She sat down next to him with her own bowl of stew. "Yup. I get to spend the next two months in oncology. Lucky me!"

He shuddered: "Peds or adults?"

"Both. I guess Wilson will be thrilled to see me around on his floor."

House rolled his eyes. "Huh, I better warn him not to try anything with my girl. You have no idea of what a panty peeler reputation he has."

Issy laughed. "I've heard some gossip about him. If half the stories are true, he's really got a technique down, huh?"

"Yes, he does, claims it works 95% of the time, but he better keep his meathooks off of my girl.

Issy smiled and touched his arm. "Don't worry. You're the only doctor for me."

House mumbled: "And let's keep it that way."

He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss before turning his attention to the steaming bowl of stew sitting in front of him. As he took a bite of the tender beef, he wondered how Wilson would react to Issy working on his floor. Surely he wouldn't try anything with her or would he? After all Wilson had plenty of motivation. Not only was Issy a smart, sexy babe, but if Wilson managed to steal her away before the bet was up, House would owe _him_ five big ones. There was no way that House was going to allow that to happen.

Issy interrupted his musings: "Hey, Thanksgiving is in a couple of weeks. Do you want me to make a bird with all the trimmings?"

House looked at her suspiciously: "You know how to do that?"

Issy snorted: "I was making the complete Thanksgiving dinner when I was nine years old. I haven't done it in a while, but I think I can remember how."

Despite the fact that he was currently stuffing his face with beef stew, House's mouth watered at the thought of Thanksgiving dinner. A turkey. Drumsticks. Stuffing and cranberry sauce. The last time he'd had a homemade Thanksgiving dinner had been when Wilson was still married to Julie and that hadn't gone so well. Julie'd had a meltdown when House complained about the whole-berry cranberry sauce. Who knew that everyone didn't eat the jellied kind? She was the hostess and should have considered that. If Issy made the dinner at home, that meant she'd fix anything he wanted and there would be several meals' worth of leftovers too.

"Yeah."

Issy glanced back at him. "Yeah, what?"

"Make Thanksgiving, but only the jellied cranberry sauce. Not the whole-berry crap, OK?"

You want the jellied kind that comes in a can?"

"Right."

Issy reached for a piece of paper and a pen. "Tell me everything you want."

House closed his eyes and thought of the perfect Thanksgiving. "Let's see, turkey and stuffing of course. Mashed potatoes and gravy. _Jellied_ cranberry sauce. Green bean casserole with the French fried onion bits on top. Apple pie with vanilla ice cream on top."

Issy wrote down everything he said and when he stopped talking, she looked up: "No sweet potato casserole with mini-marshmellows on top? No pumpkin pie?"

House waved his hand at her. "You can make those if you want, but they are not a requirement as far as I'm concerned."

"OK. You want it to be just us or shall we invite Wilson?"

House thought for a moment and then said: "Yeah, Wilson can come. I love throwing it in his face what a hot, sexy, talented babe I have."

Issy grinned: "You're sweet."

House thumped his empty bowl down on the coffee table. "I am not. Don't call me that."

"Sweet, sweet, sweet."

"Oh, you'll pay for that."

He pinned her to the couch and tickled her unmercifully. She giggled uncontrollably and flailed about, but could not dislodge him from on top of her. Finally she screamed: "Stop or I'll pee my pants."

He stopped tickling but kept her pinned to the couch. He waited for the residual giggling to subside and her breathing to return to normal, before crashing his mouth down on hers. Her response was immediate; her arms snaked around his neck and one leg wrapped around his back, urging him ever closer.

His need was urgent. With their lips still locked together, House fumbled with his belt and zipper and managed to push his pants to his knees. Issy cooperatively lifted her butt as he tugged on her lounge pants and he slid them down just enough to make contact. His hard shaft plunged into her warm wet cave and she moaned with pleasure. Hands scrambled under shirts, desperate to make even more contact with bare skin. House managed to yank her tank top completely off and relished the view of her gorgeous breasts as he pumped wildly into her. He tried to slow his movements so that he could take her over the edge with him, but he was too far gone. With a loud cry, he came deeply inside of her.

Completely spent, he collapsed on top of her. For a few minutes, he only had the strength to caress her cheek with his thumb. Then he managed to prop himself up on one elbow and look into her eyes. She was smiling sweetly at him and he smiled back. "Damn, you're sexy. Gimme a minute and I'll return the favor."

Her smile grew broader and she squeezed his softening cock with her inner muscles. He hissed: "Oh, you little minx. I'll get you for that."

Her voice was soft and seductive. "Promise?"

He chuckled against her skin. "Oh, yeah. I promise."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

The magician continued to improve and was able to be discharged after five days of steroid treatment. Cuddy started nagging House to make a final decision about his team and for that he needed another case. He had the kids scurrying around in the ER and ICU looking for potential candidates.

While they searched, he spent some time in his office thinking about Issy's story. While she had certainly had a hard life, he had to admire the determination that she had to pull herself out of the gutter. His mind wandered to that bastard stepfather of hers and how he'd like to castrate him. That led him to wondering again about her real father and why he had suddenly left her. Naturally he had tried to google John William Walker and had found a million of them, just like Issy had said. Lucas had e-mailed him last week and said he was going to Ohio to see what he could dig up; House anxiously awaited his return and the expense bill.

On the same Monday that Issy started her rotation in oncology, Cuddy interrupted House during his afternoon soap viewing, demanding that he finally give her his two choices by Friday.

House gave her a nod. "Fine. I'll arrange for a patient with a mysterious illness to come in on Thursday."

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "Right, like you need more tests. It's only been two months. Who knows how they'll react to freak weather patterns?"

"They all did fine in the wind tunnel."

Cuddy hissed: "Two names by Friday or the pay overruns come out of your salary. And I'll move your parking space to the 'E' lot!"

She stalked out of the door. House sighed, switched off the TV and headed out to the ER.

As luck would have it, Cameron did have an interesting patient for him. The guy was a drug-addicted rock singer, but House thought he had too many symptoms for them to be due to the drugs alone. He was sure that there was also an underlying disease. House had him admitted and then gathered the team in the lecture hall. After presenting the symptoms, he informed the team that _this_ was the make-or-break case. The one who diagnosed the patient would get hired and a runner-up would be decided on some unknown definition of merit.

House figured that the competition would really spark their creative juices and they would solve this case in no time. Of course, that would mean that he would have to make his final decision, but he couldn't get out of that much longer. He was having a much harder time with this decision than he thought. It had been easier with his first team, when each candidate had been hired one at a time. He stopped by Wilson's office to ask his opinion of Cutthroat Bitch, but Wilson was too worried about one of his own patients that he had mistakenly diagnosed with cancer to be of any help to House.

Cutthroat Bitch had been allowed to run the first test on the patient. As she was taking him down to Bronchoscopy, she allowed him to go into the men's room alone. The combination of a lit cigarette and an oxygen tank caused an explosion, which did quite a bit of damage to the bathroom and gave the patient a good case of smoke inhalation too. House subtracted points from Cutthroat Bitch's total for that mishap but allowed her to still test out her theory by doing a lung biopsy. Before she could perform the test, Taub noticed dark spots on the patient's fingertips. That meant he had blood clots moving through his body. It wasn't his lungs after all.

That night, House told Issy all about Jimmy Quidd and his symptoms. He even brought home some of his music and played it for her. She tried to listen, but after only a few minutes, she waved her hands at him to stop. "That's horrible. It sounds like three cats trapped inside of a trash compactor."

House agreed: "There's not one redeeming note."

He removed the offending record and put on some B.B. King instead. As the sound of the relaxing blues filled the room, House limped back to the couch and sat down next to Issy. She snuggled up next to him and they sat quietly listening to the music.

After a few minutes, House asked: "Who do you think I should keep?"

Issy looked at him: "You really want my opinion? I haven't even met them."

He shrugged: "You've heard me describe them. I'm interested in your opinion from my description alone."

Issy thought for a moment and then said: "Well, I would definitely fire Cutthroat Bitch. She may be smart, but she's just too out for herself. Maybe she'd be different when she's not playing the game, but I think she'd annoy the hell out of you."

"Point taken. Who else?"

"Well, I like Kutner. He has a lot of good ideas. I know he's a bit quirky and he's set a fire and all that, but I believe he thinks outside of the box and that's the kind of person you need on the team. It's harder to decide between the other two. Taub showed some creative thinking with the boob job on the pilot, so that's points on his side. Thirteen stood by her Lyme Disease diagnosis on that kid with the facial tumor, and you want someone who won't back down under pressure and will stick to their opinions. I don't know, Greg. It's hard to pick only two out of those three."

House nodded: "Yeah. Now, if I could just get rid of Foreman and keep the three of them, that could work for me."

"Too bad Cuddy won't let you do that."

House could only nod in agreement.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

As it turned out, House didn't have to make a decision about whether or not to reveal Issy's Dad's whereabouts if he were found. Lucas called the next day; they met up at the coffee shop and Lucas reported that he had reached a dead end.

"I managed to charm my way into looking at his employment file which they miraculously still had. His last day on the job was November 2, 1990. He punched in at 6AM and punched out at 2:30 PM. He never showed up again, didn't give notice, never even collected his last paycheck. I got his Social Security number and his exact birthdate from his employment file, but I couldn't find the slightest trace of him. That Social Security number was never used again, no tax returns were filed, no unemployment or Social Security benefits were claimed. There's no police record, no prison record and no death certificate."

"I obtained a copy of his birth certificate and his marriage license. His parents are dead, both killed in a car accident in 1984. I couldn't find any siblings, so it's possible he was an only child. I went to his last known address. Apparently his wife is still living there along with a guy named Frank Livingstone. They both work at Goodyear. I heard she has a drinking problem, has had a couple of arrests for drunk and disorderly and for DWI. I got a couple of photos, didn't know if you'd need them, but I figured that I was already in Akron, so why not?"

He tossed the papers and photos on the table. House picked up the photos and examined them carefully. The photos showed a thin, rat-faced man and a full-figured blowsy woman. He could see little resemblance between Issy and her mother; she definitely took after her dad. The man had a smirk on his face that House wanted to wipe off with his fist.

"Well, what do you think happened to him?"

Lucas shrugged: "Maybe he took off, assumed a new identity, new name, new Social Security number. If so, you'll probably never find him and you gotta wonder why he left in such a hurry. Maybe he was involved in some kind of criminal activity and had to leave town in a hurry. Maybe he's in a car at the bottom of a lake somewhere or he got robbed and killed and he's buried as a John Doe. I don't know, House. I worked all the angles, but this dude just seems to be gone."

House had to agree. He paid Lucas the agreed-upon fee and gathered up the papers and photos to take with him. He'd stash them in his office where Issy wouldn't see them. House debated whether or not he should tell Issy what Lucas had found, but then he decided not to. He couldn't see the point of raking open old wounds. Things were back to normal between them and he didn't want to disrupt the status quo.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

The rest of the day was spent trying to figure out what was causing Jimmy Quidd's blood clots. Thirteen suggested malaria, but the smears were negative for that, although they did find bad blood fragments. House attributed that to the fact that Jimmy shared needles with his heroin-addicted band mates. At one point, the patient disappeared and was finally located in the pediatric wing entertaining the kids.

When Jimmy went into respiratory failure, Kutner suggested a chronic pulmonary embolism. Foreman disputed that theory because the D-Dimer test was normal. House ended up doing an echo and found some peculiar masses around the patient's heart. Since Jimmy had the shakes from heroin withdrawal, the pictures were a bit fuzzy and hard to read. Taub suggested doing a MRA, but the results would be the same as long as Jimmy had the shakes. They needed another way to visualize the blood vessels around the heart.

Between them, House and Taub managed to convince Chase to perform exploratory surgery. The masses that House had seen on the echo turned out to be grossly swollen lymph nodes. The patient coded on the table, but they managed to revive him. By the time he was stabilized, it was almost 11 PM so House sent everyone home.

As he drove home, he pondered the possible causes of the humongous lymph nodes. It had to be an infection of some type, but what? All the usual suspects had been ruled out.

His favorite parking spot right in front of the building was waiting for him along with a plate of beef stroganoff in the refrigerator. As he waited for the microwave to warm his food, he again weighed the pros and cons of each applicant. Today he had asked two other people their opinions about the candidates. Chase had told him to keep Taub and Amber because, with them, he would get stuff done. Cuddy had told him to keep Taub and Kutner. She thought he should keep Taub because Taub would stand up to him and that he should keep Kutner because of their shared philosophy of medicine. Issy had given him her opinion last night; Wilson had been mum on the subject. Cameron flat out refused to give her opinion. He hadn't bothered to ask Foreman because he didn't care what he thought.

So far, the tally was two votes for Kutner, two votes for Taub, one for and one against Amber and no definite opinions on Thirteen. House still liked the idea of getting rid of Foreman and Cutthroat Bitch, but he doubted that Cuddy would let him do that.

House ate his dinner while he channel-surfed and simultaneously pondered over Jimmy's condition and the fate of his applicants. His brain was half past numb by the time he finished eating, so he packed it in and went to bed. He wrapped his arms around the warm naked woman in his bed and fell into a deep sleep.

They spent the morning trying to figure out the cause of his respiratory failure and enlarged lymph nodes. Thirteen suspected that the drugs he had been using could have been laced with all manner of things, so House decided to put him on dimercaprol for heavy metal poisoning and told the team to find his drug source.

Several hours later, Kutner appeared to report that they had been unable to find the drug source and that the dimercaprol wasn't working anyway. Almost as an aside, he mentioned that Jimmy volunteered at a home for abandoned kids.

House rolled his eyes: "And how is that medically relevant?"

Kutner shrugged: "I don't know. His bass player told me so I thought I'd mention it."

House huffed: "Assemble the team."

They met back in the conference room. No one had any new ideas. Finally House asked: "So _all_ we know is that he's dying? Great. Who wants to tell the patient?"

No one answered.

"Fine! We'll get some kid to go talk to him, since it seems that kids are only people he gets along with anyway."

As House started to walk out of the door, the epiphany hit him. He had the team follow him to Cuddy's office. He explained to her that he needed a brain biopsy on his patient and how he could not have gotten the diagnosis without the help of each one of his applicants. House was convinced that the patient had plain old measles. He had been exposed from the kids that he volunteered with and despite the fact that he had been vaccinated in his younger years, Jimmy's immune system had been shredded from years of drug abuse and the resultant infection ended up deep in his brain. After House demonstrated that the patient had neurological symptoms by inducing a seizure, the brain biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of measles. They started the patient on corticosteroid treatment. Despite his impassioned plea, Cuddy would not let him keep all four applicants. House still had to make a decision.

The fellows were waiting anxiously in the lecture hall when he walked in. He fired Amber because he felt that she was not willing to be wrong or to lose and if she was going to work for him, she had to be able to do that. Then he fired Thirteen simply because Cuddy would only let him keep two applicants.

As he was packing up his things to head home, Cuddy stormed into his office and asked: "What the hell did you do?"

House shrugged: "You told me to hire Kutner and Taub. I did."

"I said that because I knew you wouldn't. I can't let you hire two men."

Indignantly House said: "Now _that_ is sexist."

"You need to hire a woman. Hire Thirteen. She gives a crap about people."

"Whatever you say. I'll call her right now."

"Fine."

Cuddy headed towards the door. With her hand on the doorknob, she paused and turned around. "This was your plan all along, wasn't it?"

House just smiled. He couldn't wait to tell Issy that he managed to get _almost _everything that what he wanted out of She-devil Cuddy. He got to keep the three applicants that he wanted, but he was still stuck with Foreman.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

While House was dealing with Jimmy Quidd and making his final decisions about his team, Issy started her first week on the oncology floor. It turned out not to be as depressing as she had feared. The floor was a bright colorful place; the walls painted in sunny yellow and sky blue. Their kitchen had the best snacks in the whole hospital and Issy was surprised that House didn't realize that. They even had Creamsicles and Klondike bars in the freezer. The kids had a great playroom at the end of the pediatric wing and the nurses were surprisingly upbeat and cheerful.

Issy was teamed with Sophia for the first part of the week. Sophia was a short Latina woman who wore thick eyeglasses and kept her long dark hair pulled back in a bun. She took her job very seriously and was quick to speak her mind if there was a problem with one of her patients. The man in room 523 was throwing up and the anti-nausea medicine hadn't arrived yet from the pharmacy? Sophia was on the phone calling them. Doctor ordered a questionable dose? She was double-checking the dose with the pharmacist before you could turn around. A small wince or grunt from a patient and she was inquiring about the patient's pain level. If the current dosage wasn't keeping the patient's pain down to a tolerable level, Sophia was on the phone speaking to the doctor about upping the dose or trying a different med. Sophia was never rude in dealing with the doctors or pharmacists; she was just efficient and brisk in her mannerisms and usually ended her long discourse with _'you know what I mean, babe?'_ She was a real patient advocate and Issy learned a lot from her in just those three days.

On Thursday, she was rotated over to the pediatric side of the floor. She was a bit nervous about dealing with the 'bald-headed kids' as Greg called them. It was hard seeing such young children going through these rough treatments, and yet, if they weren't too sick, they were just like any other kid. They spent time in the playroom; they had art therapy. Volunteers read them stories; clowns and other entertainers visited the floor. In some ways, it was a happy place, except for the puke buckets and the occasional visitation from the Grim Reaper.

Issy was teamed with Kristin, a young energetic woman in her early 30's. She introduced Issy to each of their three patients as they made their early morning medicine rounds. Before they went into each room, Kristin gave Issy a quick run-down on the type of cancer that the child had, his or her current status and the things that they liked to do. She explained that she liked to engage the children in conversation about their favorite things as it helped to take their minds off of the treatments.

Right before they walked into the last room, Kristin said: "This is Davey. He's five years old and is very into Batman. He is having chemo today. Dr Wilson is giving him intrathecal methotrexate for his leukemia and Davey is very anxious about it. He hates needles and always wants you to tell him about many 'sticks' he is going to have before you start the procedure and count them down during the procedure. Dr Wilson will need our assistance later to administer the chemo. Have you met him yet?"

Issy nodded: "Yes, I have." She didn't go into any further details.

"Isn't he nice? And he is so good with the patients."

Issy just nodded with agreement as they walked into Davey's room. So far this week, she had only seen Dr Wilson from a distance; she hadn't had a chance to interact with him at all. Guess that would change today.

The little boy was sitting up in bed with the bedside table pulled over his lap. His still full cereal bowl was pushed aside as he used the remaining table space to play with his Batman figurines.

Kristin said brightly: "Good morning Davey. I want you to meet someone. This is Issy. She's a nursing student here and she's going to be helping me today."

Issy said in an equally bright tone: "Hi, Davey."

He glanced up at her and then back down at his action figures. "Hi."

Kristin continued on: "You didn't eat your breakfast? I thought you liked Cheerios. Want some Frosted Flakes or Fruit Loops instead?"

The small boy mumbled: "I'm not hungry."

"I could make you some eggs or a grilled cheese sandwich."

Davey just shook his head; he placed Batman into his Batmobile and started zooming the car around the table.

Issy piped up: "You want me to get the bowl out of Batman's way?"

The child looked up at her and nodded. Issy grabbed the bowl, took it out into the hallway and set it on the food service pickup cart. Davey was zooming the Batmobile all over the tray when she returned, but he paused long enough to give her a brief smile.

Kristin said: "Well, maybe you and Batman will be hungry for lunch. I hear there's a choice between spaghetti-o's and chicken fingers."

Davey ignored her and continued playing with his action figures.

Kristin checked his pulse, made an adjustment to his IV and then said: "Davey, do you remember what today is? Dr. Wilson is going to give you the chemo in your spine today."

His lower lip trembled: "How many needles is that?"

"I think it is just the one needle, but you'll have to ask Dr Wilson to be sure. He should be here soon. Do you want me to get you anything now?"

He shook his head, lower lip jutting out in a pout.

Issy asked: "Does Batman need anything?"

Davey pondered for a moment and then said: "Batman needs a juice box. He wants grape."

Issy nodded: "OK. I'll go get him one."

Kristin smiled at her cleverness in getting Davey to state what he wanted. Issy ran out to the kitchen and grabbed two grape juice boxes, just in case Batman was really thirsty. She returned to the room just as Dr. Wilson was approaching the door. He gave her a friendly smile and motioned her to enter in front of him.

As he walked in, he said: "Hi Kristin. Hey, Davey. Did Batman catch the Joker yet?"

Davey merely shot Dr Wilson a look.

Wilson plopped down in the chair next to the bed. "Oh, oh, someone doesn't look happy to see me."

Davey whined: "How many needles this time?"

Wilson held up one finger. "Just the one. First I'm going to rub this cream on your back and numb the spot. Then I'll put one needle into your skin. All the other needles will go into that one and you won't feel them. OK?"

Davey looked suspiciously at Wilson, but nodded anyway.

"You're going to need to lie on your side for this, just like we did last week. I'm going to need to move this table now. Do you want Batman on the bed with you?"

The child grabbed Batman, still sitting in his Batmobile, and clutched him to his chest. After a nod from Wilson, Issy moved the table out of the way.

"Davey, I need you to roll over onto your side with your back to me.

The boy slowly rolled onto his left side and presented his back to Wilson, who parted his gown, exposing his back. "The cream will feel a little bit cool on your skin. Ready?"

Davey nodded and Wilson proceeded to apply the cream. Kristin then handed Wilson a sterile drape with a square hole in the middle of it. Wilson placed it over the boy's back with the hole positioned over the lumbar spine, where he would do the intrathecal injection.

Wilson addressed Issy: "Have you ever seen an intrathecal injection before?"

Issy shook her head.

He went on: "The procedure itself is sort of like a lumbar puncture. It's just instead of taking spinal fluid out; we're putting the chemo in. It's a relatively quick procedure."

Davey's tone was pleading: "And only one needle, right? You said only one."

Wilson gently rubbed Davey's upper back. "Only one, Davey. I promise. I'll warn you before it happens and you can hold Issy's hand if you want."

Davey mumbled something but they couldn't make it out. As Wilson opened his mouth to ask him what he had said, Glenda, the nurse tech, walked into the room carrying a white plastic bag. "Davey's chemo is here, Dr. Wilson, and Kristin, Tommy needs you next door. His IV pump is beeping away."

Kristin said: "Oh, maybe you can get one of the other nurses to look in on him. I need to help Dr Wilson here."

Wilson said: "Oh, go ahead, Kristin. Issy and I have got this."

Kristin looked surprised: "Are you sure, Dr Wilson? I can get."

He interrupted her: "No, really, we'll be fine. It's not a complicated procedure and I'm sure Issy will do just fine."

Issy wasn't sure what she had to do to help Dr Wilson, but she figured that he would tell her. She nodded at Kristin to let her know that she'd be OK.

Kristin said: "Well, OK. If you need anything, just holler. I'll be right next door."

Wilson reiterated: "We'll be fine."

With a slight sense of reluctance, Kristin followed Glenda out of Davey's room.

Wilson looked at Issy and said: "While we are waiting for the cream to work, here's what I need you to do. Get me a pair of size large gloves and then put on some gloves yourself. Once you are gloved, put a drape over the bedside table and take the methotrexate syringe out of the bag for me."

Issy followed his instructions to a 'T' and then moved the table closer so that he could reach the syringe when he was ready for it.

Wilson said to Davey: "Are you ready, Buddy?"

In a very reluctant tone, he replied: "I guess so."

"OK, I need you to curl into a ball with your knees to your chest, just like you did the last time."

Under Wilson's instructions, Issy helped Davey get into the proper position. She had one hand on the back of his head and the other behind his knees to keep him in the right position for the needle stick.

Wilson swabbed Davey's back with betadine and then said: "OK, Buddy. This is it. One stick and that will be it. Hold very still for me."

He mouthed to Issy: "Talk to him."

Issy thought quickly and then said: "Hey Davey, what do you think would happen if the Joker and the Riddler and the Penguin all ganged up on Batman at the same time?"

As Wilson eased the needle into Davey's spine, he made a small grimace of pain and then said: "Batman would still beat them all."

"Really? All three of them at once? Wow, he really is a tough guy, isn't he? What if Catwoman was there too?"

Davey replied in a disgusted tone: "Catwoman is a _girl_. Batman can take care of her."

"Well, for a girl, she's pretty tough. She's got that whip too."

As the two of them discussed Batman and his foes, Wilson quickly injected the chemo drug into Davey's spine. He was pleased at Issy's way of distracting the child from the procedure.

"OK, Davey, it's all done. I'm taking the needle out now. Small pinch. There, that's it. Now I need you to lie on your stomach for an hour so that the medicine can move up your spine. Remember you did this last time too. One of the nurses will come and tell you when an hour's up, OK?"

Davey begged: "Can Issy stay with me?"

Wilson looked surprised. Davey rarely asked for anything and he certainly never asked for anyone. His mom was a single parent and overwhelmed with dealing with her sick child, two other children and a difficult job. She was rarely here for his treatments and little Davey had to tough them out on his own. Somehow, he seemed to know that his Mom couldn't be there for him and he rarely asked for her.

"Of course, Issy can stay with you."

Issy looked up at Wilson with a questioningly look on her face.

He waved his hand at her. "I'll tell Kristin; it will be fine. Just keep him on his stomach for an hour and then he can roll over onto his back or side. By lunchtime, he'll be able to sit up to eat. If he sits up too soon, he could get a headache so that's what we are trying to prevent."

Issy nodded and glanced at the clock, noting the time.

As Wilson walked out of the room in search of Kristin, he heard Issy say: "So, Davey, who do _you_ think is Batman's toughest villain?"

Over lunch that day, Wilson told House about working with Issy. "She was really great with that kid. Kept him distracted while I did the intrathecal. She should consider peds as a specialty. She knows how to talk to them."

House swiped a fry off of Wilson's plate. As he munched it, he said: "I don't think she's really into kids. Just cuz you can talk to them, doesn't mean you want to work with them day after day. The only specialties that she's mentioned to me are ER and ICU."

"They have certifications which means more money. Is she chasing the money?"

House shrugged: "More money is better than less money."

Wilson nodded slowly as he chewed a bite of his tuna fish sandwich. Suddenly he asked: "Did Issy grow up poor?"

House frowned and asked: "Why do you ask?"

"She seems very money conscious, rather unlike the other women I've seen you date. I've seen her give you back your change from the delivery guys and comment about things on sale at the grocery store, like you give a rat's ass about sale items. It just made me wonder."

House damned his keen observational skills. "She's had some tough times, let's just leave it at that."

In a sympathetic tone, he said: "She doesn't like to talk about it, huh?"

Brusquely he replied: "No, and neither do I."

He swiped the three remaining fries on Wilson's plate and limped away, leaving Wilson to bus both trays.

That night, with his own case solved and his team finalized, he asked Issy how her week in oncology was going. She filled him in on what she had learned so far and told him about helping Wilson with the intrathecal procedure today.

When she finished her tale, House said: "I had lunch with Wilson today. He told me all about it. Said you were really good with that kid. He was very complementary."

Issy looked surprised, but pleased. "Really? He said I was good?"

"He said, and I quote, you were really great and should consider peds as a specialty."

"Oh, that was nice of him to say that. But I definitely don't want to do peds."

He nudged her closer to him so that he could wrap his arm around her shoulders. "You don't like kids?"

"I like kids OK. I just think it would be too emotionally draining to be around sick ones all the time."

House nodded in agreement. "One thing you must learn is how to maintain a professional distance from your patients. You can't get invested in them. The nature of our professions is that sometimes, no matter what we do, patients die. We do everything we can to prevent it, but often it can't be helped. And if you want to work in the ER or in ICU, you'll probably see death a lot more often than if you worked, say, on the ortho floor."

Issy nodded: "You're right about that. I think I can maintain a distance though, I've kinda had a little practice at distance in my former occupation."

She blushed but continued on: "It's just that seeing kids die would be harder than seeing adults die, to me anyway."

He stroked her cheek: "It's harder for most people. It's our biology; we are programmed to protect the young. They are not supposed to die before we do; they need to stick around and take care of our wrinkly asses in our old age."

Issy let out a little giggle: "Yeah, that's true. Is that why you keep me around?"

His hands went to her ribs and he tickled her a little bit. "Are you saying my ass is wrinkly? Is that what you're telling me?"

He tickled her harder; she giggled as she squirmed to get away from him. "No, no, it's not wrinkly. It's nice and firm and sexy. _Stop!"_

He stopped tickling but tapped his fingers against her sensitive spots. "Sexy, huh? You think my ass is sexy?"

"Very sexy."

He gave a faux snort. "So you _say_."

"Want me to prove it?"

"Yeah, how you gonna do that?"

Issy stood and extended her hand to him. She gave him one of her sultry smiles. "Come to the bedroom with me and I'll show ya."

He stood and took her hand. "It might take a lot of convincing. My ass's feelings were hurt by what you said."

As they headed down the hall together, Issy said: "I think your ass and I can kiss and make up."


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Buckle your seatbelts,,,,,**

Chapter 29

Finally it was Friday. Issy stopped on the way home and picked up all the supplies that she needed to make the Thanksgiving meal next week. The Butterball turkey went into the freezer for now; she'd start thawing it on Monday. She made sure that she got everything that Doc wanted to eat, plus she also got the ingredients to make sweet potato casserole with the mini-marshmellows. To her, it wasn't Thanksgiving without that dish. Wilson had been invited and promised to bring both apple and pumpkin pies.

She was still putting the groceries away when House walked in. He hung up his own things for a change and then limped into the kitchen to claim his kiss.

He smiled inwardly as he saw the heaps of food that she was putting away. "Thanksgiving looks good and it's not even cooked yet. I'm definitely wearing my loosest fitting pants for this meal."

Issy laughed as she stowed the last can of cranberry sauce into the pantry. "I think sweats or pajamas will definitely be the _'pants du jour'_ next Thursday. As you can see, I just got home so dinner will be a little while yet."

He pulled her into his arms. "Don't bother cooking. Let's just get a pizza and relax."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and quickly agreed. "Can we play some more Guitar Hero tonight?"

Issy was fast becoming hooked on the game.

He chuckled and nibbled on her neck. "Sure, why not? Call Marco's and get us a large pie first. I'm starved."

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

Issy answered the knock at the door fully expecting the pizza delivery guy. She screamed when she saw the man holding the pizza. He pushed his way inside and was following by another man.

The second man was wearing an Armani suit and had an air of superiority about him. He walked in and positioned himself about a foot away from Issy. "Thought you could get away from me, cunt?"

Issy held her hands up defensively. "No, no, no, Mr. Mancini. I'm sorry. I got tied up with school and forgot to call you back."

He backhanded her across the face and sent her flying against the back of the couch. "Don't lie to me, cunt."

Hearing the commotion, House hurried out of the bathroom and down the hall. "What the fuck's going on? Who the hell are these guys?"

The guy holding the pizza tossed it on the floor and shoved House up against the wall, kicking his cane out of reach. With one arm across House's chest, he pinned House firmly to the wall and then pulled out a long switchblade and held it under House's chin. House's eyes widened, but he remained still and silent. The guy's face was mere inches from his own and as they stared at each other, House realized that the guy was the goon who had let him in the back that night at Body Shots when he first met Issy. _Oh shit. This is bad._

The goon kept his eye on House and asked: "What do you want me to do to him, boss?"

"Nothing yet, Angelo. I want him to be quiet and watch the party."

He grabbed Issy by the hair and pulled her to a standing position. "So, you little cunt. You lied to me and told me that you broke your ankle and couldn't work for a few weeks. I hold your job for you and this is the thanks I get? You don't call; you don't come by."

Issy begged: "Mr. Mancini, I'm sorry."

He slapped her again and House twitched, but Angelo pressed the knife more firmly against his skin and he backed down. Angelo snickered at his reaction.

Mr. Mancini twisted Issy's head around so that she was facing House. He could see the complete and utter terror on her face.

"This is who you left me for? A cripple? From the looks of this place and the car he drives, it doesn't seem like he has enough money to be your sugar daddy, doctor or no doctor. Is he the same one, Angelo?"

"Yeah, boss. He's the same guy that went in the back with her two months ago. I remember that flame cane and cuz they took a damn long time back there and I called her on it. She said he was a _cripple_ and he needed some _extra time_."

House knew the guy was saying that just to rile him and he suppressed the ugly emotions that rose with those words. If Issy had really said those words that first night, it didn't matter now. All that mattered was figuring out how to get these two goons out of here without bloodshed.

"So, not only do you leave my place of employment without the courtesy of a personal good-bye, you steal one of _my_ customers to be your personal sugar daddy. You know how I feel about stealing, you dirty cunt."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Mancini. If you could let me explain."

He slapped her again; House flinched and Angelo pressed the knife into his skin just enough to draw blood. "Simmer down Doc, youse wanna stay conscious and enjoy the party, doncha?"

Mr. Mancini let out an evil-sounding chuckle. "You know what I do to the bitches who leave me? Nah, you don't, cuz they never talk about it. They know better. Marcy never told you what I did to her for leaving me flat, did she? And I made her pay extra cuz we had to drive all the way to Boston to deliver the message. I hate Boston; the traffic sucks. It's worse than Philly and New York put together."

He drew a switchblade out of his pocket and flicked it open in front of her face. She trembled as he held the blade to her throat and then he swiftly cut the straps of her tank top and sliced a seam all the way down the front. The ruined garment fell to the floor.

Mr. Mancini cupped one breast and squeezed hard. "Such lovely titties. I do miss seeing these perky melons on my stage and in my hands when you'd come into my office for a private chat."

He held the knife underneath her left nipple. "Do you miss our little chats, cunt?"

Issy whispered: "Yes, Mr. Mancini."

House was panicking but there was nothing he could do. If he made a move, surely the goon would slice his throat. Anyway he was no match for two strong men with weapons and even his cane was out of reach.

"What do you miss most, sucking me off or bending over my desk and my cock filling you from behind?"

"B-both of t-them."

He laughed: "Oh, how politically correct of you! Can't pick just one, can you, cunt? And you're stuttering now. A little nervous, are we?"

He pressed the knife harder against her nipple and she gasped. "Yes!"

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, Mr. M-mancini, I'm n-nervous."

"You should be. Drop your pants, you got me all hot and bothered and I can't decide if I wanna fuck you or have you suck me off. Either way, I wanna see that delicious bod of yours."

Issy quickly obeyed and her lounge pants and throng hit the floor. She stood completely nude in front of the three men. Her emotions ranged from complete humiliation to abject fear as to what would happen next.

Mr. Mancini snickered. "You let your cunt hair grow back? The doc like it better that way?"

"Yes, Mr. Mancini."

"Well, you know I like it better waxed off. Guess you can suck me off tonight. I don't wanna fuck your hairy pussy. On your knees, cunt."

Issy didn't dare glance at House. The embarrassment of being forced to do this in front of him was extreme, to say the least. All Issy could do was hope that Mr. Mancini would be satisfied with the job and not physically injure either of them.

He ordered her to unzip him and take his cock out. As she complied, Mr. Mancini commented to Angelo: "She's still somewhat obedient, isn't she Angelo?"

He smacked his lips and wiggled his eyebrows: "Looks that way, boss. She's still a hottie, even with the cunt hair."

Mr. Mancini looked down at her: "You better suck me good, babe. Your sugar daddy's life hangs in the balance over how good you perform tonight. You remember how I like it?"

Issy did and it only increased her humiliation level. He wanted her to beg for it. She knew that she had no choice; she couldn't let him hurt Doc.

"Mr. Mancini, please let me suck your cock."

"Oh, I don't know. You don't sound like you really mean it. Did she sound like she meant it, Angelo?"

"It didn't sound so sincere, boss."

Mancini pressed the point of the knife under Issy's chin. "Maybe I should let Angelo have some fun with your doctor instead."

Issy begged harder. "Please, Mr. Mancini, please let me suck your cock. I want to feel your big thick cock thrusting in my mouth. I want to swallow your cum. Please let me suck you, let me make you happy tonight."

He snorted and then hissed: "Take it."

House thought he was going to be physically sick, listening to Issy beg to suck this bastard's cock. He knew that she had no choice but it didn't make him feel any better. The knife pressure against his jugular reminded him that there was no way for him to save her from this either.

Issy took Mancini's cock into her mouth and attempted to give him the best blowjob of his life. She tried desperately to forget that she was doing this at knifepoint and that a knife was being held at Doc's throat too. She blanked her mind and tried to imagine that she was blowing Doc instead. It didn't really work, as Mr. Mancini tasted completely different than Doc did and she couldn't erase the situation entirely from her mind. But apparently she did a good enough job because before she knew it, he pulled her hair hard enough to make her cry out. Then he pulled his cock from her mouth and shot his load all over her face.

"And don't you dare wipe your face off, cunt. Wear my cum like the badge of honor that it is."

Issy longed to wipe her face but she didn't dare move. Hands pressed against her thighs, she remained on her knees while Mr. Mancini stuffed his limp cock back into his pants and zipped up.

"Well, that was fun. Now, we'll have a little more fun."

He pulled a blackjack out of another pocket and then yanked Issy up by the hair. His arm rose and fell again and again as he struck her on her breasts, ribs, belly and thighs with the blackjack. Finally he slung her over the back of the couch and showered her back and her ass with blows.

The pain was excruciating but Issy managed not to cry out. Years of coping with beatings from her stepfather had trained her to swallow her screams, knowing that it would only encourage her attacker even more.

Finally he stopped and rubbed his shoulder. "That was a good workout, Angelo. Better than the gym."

The goon chuckled: "Way more fun than the gym, boss."

"Got a little more fun to go."

He grabbed Issy by the hair and commanded her to kneel on the floor again. Despite the pain, she moved quickly into position.

Mr. Mancini approached the far wall where Angelo was still holding House captive.

"Watch the knife, Angelo, we don't want any serious accidents, do we?"

Angelo grinned: "No, boss."

The goon lowered the knife but didn't put it away. He moved slightly to House's left side but kept a firm hold on him. The boss moved to House's right side and quickly handed a blow on House's bad thigh with the blackjack. House screamed with the pain and Mr. Mancini landed three more blows in rapid succession on the injured leg. Angelo let go of House and he slid to the floor, gasping and clutching his injured thigh.

Issy's eyes filled with tears as she watched. This was all her fault. If she hadn't left the club and gotten involved with House, this would have never happened.

Mr. Mancini shoved the blackjack back into his pocket and rubbed his hands together gleefully. "Now, just one more thing. Are you awake and alert, Doc? I'm sure you'll enjoy this part, since it's this cunt's fault that you are now in excruciating pain."

He nodded to Angelo: "He ain't moving, help me with her."

Angelo handed his boss the blade before moving behind Issy and yanking her up by the hair. He grabbed her around the waist with the other hand and pressed up against his body. The other hand still clenched her hair tightly enough to force her head back. Mr. Mancini approached her with the knife out.

_He's gonna kill me. He's gonna cut my throat right in front of Doc. Oh, God, oh, God, I'm dead. Oh, God, I hope he doesn't kill Doc too. I'm sorry Doc, I'm so sorry that I got you into this._

Mr. Mancini looked her right in the eyes, the knife held high in his right hand. "You know after this little incident that your sugar daddy is gonna kick your ass out in the street. It happened to Marcy and all of the others, so don't think you're going to be the exception. And don't think you can come crawling back to me for your old job back. I won't have you back, you dirty cunt whore. And I'm going to make sure that you won't be able to work at any club in the tri-state area. Every club owner knows the mark of Guido Mancini; they see the mark on you and they know damn well that they better not hire you or they will feel my wrath. Hold her, Angelo."

Issy knew better than to struggle, but she didn't expect Mr. Mancini to heft her left breast with his hand. He sighed: "Damn shame too. These are some gorgeous tits you got."

With a quick motion, he slashed her across the top of her left breast. Issy screamed and sagged against Angelo who continued his tight grip on her. Just as quickly, Mr. Mancini grabbed her right breast and ripped a line across the top of that breast too. This time, Angelo let her drop to the floor and he gave her a kick in the ribs.

Mr. Mancini wiped his blade on Issy's discarded lounge pants. "Now you're marked. Good luck finishing nursing school with no sugar daddy and no way to make a living. You'll be turning tricks on the street to eat."

They walked to the door and Mr. Mancini turned to give one last parting shot. "You thought you were better than the average whore. You thought you'd get out of this life. Stupid cunt. Once a whore, always a whore. You'll never get out."

The two men laughed as they walked out the door.


	30. Chapter 30

**RAFTP Chapter 30**

Issy wanted to die, right then and there. She could see no point in going on with life. She closed her eyes in a brief prayer, but knew it was to no avail. If there were a God, he had a very strange sense of humor, allowing her to live through such horrors. If the Sikhs were right, Issy must have done something very bad in a former life to be reincarnated into such a life of misery.

A loud groan from House brought her back to the present. Despite her own pain and the copious amount of blood seeping from her breast wounds, she knew that House was in much worse pain than she was in. She forced herself to her elbow and looked at him.

"Greg, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. What can I do to help you?"

"Help me? Issy, you're bleeding and you're fucking black and blue all over. We need to call the cops and get you to the hospital."

"NO! No cops! Don't you know who Guido Mancini is? He's in the mob. We call the cops and tell them about this and we're both dead."

"Hell, I know someone in the mob too. Maybe he can help us out with Guido, but in the meantime, we need to get you patched up. Jesus, I can't call Wilson and explain all of this to him."

"I'll be OK. Just tell me what I can do for you."

"My leg is throbbing, nothing that three or four Vicodins or a shot of Morphine won't cure. You, on the other hand, are bleeding and probably need stitches."

Issy muttered: "I'll be OK. I'll just wash the blood off. I'm sure I don't need stitches."

House groaned: "Stitches or at the very least butterfly bandages to keep the wound closed. _Son of a bitch!_ Where does that asshole get off thinking he owns you and every girl that works for him?"

"I don't know. I've never heard about this happening to girls that left him and I've talked to Marcy several times since she moved to Boston."

"When was the last time you talked to her?"

"Sometime in the summer."

"Maybe he didn't get to her until after that. You haven't spoken to her in a few months now."

Issy nodded. "That's true. I'll have to call her and see if she's OK."

House said grimly: "Not tonight. We need to take care of business here."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his bottle of Vicodin, dry-swallowing three of them. He needed to get Issy into the bathroom and get her washed off so he could see how bad those cuts were. He debated calling Taub; the little plastic surgeon was just the person he needed to close Issy's wounds and minimize the scarring, but could he take the risk of allowing Taub to see this part of his life? Hell, he didn't even want Wilson to know about it and he'd known Wilson for years. He hated the thought that Taub would have a trump card over him. A lot depended on how bad the wounds were and he couldn't assess them while they were covered with blood. They needed to get in the bathroom.

"Issy, can you move?"

She nodded listlessly.

"Think you can lock the door and help me get to my feet?"

She nodded again; using the couch for support, she managed to ease herself to her feet. With one hand clutching her ribs, she slowly made her way to the door and threw the deadbolt.

House watched her movements. She staggered and had trouble walking across the open floor space to reach the front door. Her complexion was very pale and he was concerned that she might go into shock. He didn't think that she had lost enough blood for that to be the reason, but between the blood loss, the beating and the whole terrifying situation, shock was still possible. He felt for his phone and was relieved that it was in his other pocket. Just in case, he couldn't deal with this on his own, he wanted to be sure he had the phone nearby. He'd call Wilson or 911 if he really had to.

Issy seemed too weak to be able to help him much, so he asked her to bring the desk chair over. She pushed it over to him. He managed to pull himself up into the chair and then with her help and his cane, managed to get to his feet. It was a slow walk down the hall for both of them, each leaning on a wall for support.

House had Issy sit on the toilet while he fetched some washcloths. First he washed that bastard's cum off of her face, as he couldn't stand seeing her in such a humiliating condition. Issy leaned against the back of the toilet, closed her eyes and let him do what he wanted to her. She seemed listless, unconcerned about her condition and that worried him.

_Issy knew the game was up. There was no way that Doc was going to continue to let her stay with him. She would have to leave but where could she go? She had no friends to stay with, even temporarily. She wasn't going to be able to get another job dancing. How would she be able to support herself and still finish school? She just couldn't see a way. It wasn't worth the effort any more. She wondered how high the roof of PPTH was and if it were high enough. Maybe she should just drive back to New York and do it there. There were lots of high bridges and there was a good chance that she would never be found in the river. That way, at least, House and Wilson wouldn't see her body after it was over. She owed House that much at least._

House gently washed the blood off of her breasts. The wounds were gaping and his supply of butterfly bandages was simply not going to do a decent job of closing her wounds. She needed stitches. He had a small supply, but it probably wasn't enough to close both wounds. Besides, in his condition, he would do a crappy job of it. He could barely stand and his hands shook as he washed her off. She deserved better than a hack job; she deserved a professional and he had one on his call list. There might be fallout, but he would figure out how to deal with that later. First he had to get the guy to agree to come back. Not wanting Issy to hear the methods that he might have to employ to get Taub to come back to Princeton tonight, House stepped out into the hallway to make the call.

_The George Washington Bridge seemed like the best bet. She knew the neighborhood around the bridge well; there was a place nearby where she could park her car and walk onto the bridge. A lot of people walked across the bridge and she would look like just one of the crowd. That is, until she got to the middle, climbed up over the railing and jumped. It was for the best. She had tried so hard to overcome her past and there just didn't seem to be any way for that to happen. No matter what she did or how hard she tried, she would always be a whore. It was time to throw in the towel and hope that karma would give her a better life next time. She wondered if she had the strength to drive there tonight, or if she should just wait until morning. _

It hadn't been easy to convince Taub to come back to Princeton. It took a lot of flattery along the lines of _'only your special skills can help this patient,'_ but in the end, House managed to seal the deal. Taub would meet them in the clinic in an hour. As hard as it was going to be to get the two of them all the way to PPTH, that was still preferable to Taub coming to their home.

After finishing the call, House stepped back into the bathroom. Issy had not moved. House grabbed her wrist and checked her pulse; it was a little fast but not dangerously so.

In a gentle tone, he called her name. "Issy? Baby, open your eyes for me."

She complied with his request. The depth of sadness in her eyes moved him and he gently stroked her cheek. Tears welled in her eyes and a couple dripped down her face, but she made no movement to wipe them away. House ended up catching them with his thumb.

_You've been so good to me, but you deserve better than a whore like me for your girlfriend. You'll find someone else who'll make you happy._

"Issy, you need stitches and I'm not going to be able to do that here. Taub is going to meet us in the clinic. He's the plastic surgeon, remember? He'll do a much better job than I could."

_What's the point? I'll be in the river by tomorrow. No one is ever going to see these breasts again, anyway. _

She shook her head. "No, no. It's OK. You don't have to do that. I'll be fine."

In a more insistent tone, House said: "Issy, you have to have stitches. The wounds won't close properly, they might get infected, and they will leave you with a bigger scar. I already got Taub to come back. Let's get some clothes on and go."

He tried to get her to move off of the toilet, but she wouldn't budge.

"Doc, what's the point? You're going to kick me out; you'll never have to look at my ugly tits again. I'm marked; I'll never dance again and if I can't dance to support myself, I won't be able to finish nursing school. The game is over. I lost. I'll never be anything else but a whore."

He frowned at her. He knew that she had just been through a horrific experience, but it seemed ridiculous to jump to such a hasty conclusion. "And that's it? After everything you've been through, you're giving up just like that?"

Woodenly, she said: "There doesn't seem to be any point in going on."

Emphatically he said: "Oh, yes there is. For one thing, I'm not throwing you out. I'll be looking at your lovely tits until June, sweetheart, and I've already convinced a Park Avenue plastic surgeon to drive back to Princeton tonight to sew you up nice and pretty. You will finish nursing school _cuz my girlfriend is not dropping out."_

Issy seemed stunned. "Your girlfriend?"

"That's your role, remember?"

Slack-jawed, she stared at him. "You're not kicking me out? But Mr. Mancini said that you would. He said _all_ the men kicked their girls out after he'd finished with them. And you saw me have to."

Her face screwed up. "_Beg _to do_ that_. Oh, God, you don't want me to stay. You'll never want to touch me again after seeing me do that."

She started sobbing and tried to stand to get away, but pain and stiffness had set in after sitting on the toilet for so long, and she stumbled right into House's arms. Fortunately he had braced himself and managed to keep both of them upright.

He held her as she cried. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he whispered: "I'm not like those men, Issy. I'm not kicking you out."

He kissed the top of her head. "It was rough, Issy. It was rough watching my girlfriend get raped at knifepoint right in front of me and not being able to do a damn thing about it. I wanted to protect you but I couldn't. All I can do right now, is get you medically taken care of and then bring you back home. I'll tuck you into our bed and hold you all night. I can't change the past, but I'll do what I can for the present. OK? You'll let me take you to the hospital and get you patched up?"

Issy nodded and House breathed a sigh of relief. "That's my girl. Come on, let's get you dressed and head in there."


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Issy couldn't believe that House was going to let her stay. He was probably just saying that until she was calmer and then he'd kick her out. Well, if it made him feel better to get her patched up, she'd go along with it. When he did finally kick her out, she would just drive straight to New York and get it over with. Until then, she'd continue to play his game.

He helped her pull on some sweat pants, a sports bra and a sweatshirt. Her bruises were already starting to appear and soft clothing seemed the order of the day. House hoped that the sports bra would be supportive enough to keep the cuts from opening even further until Taub could stitch her up. The butterfly bandages would only do so much. He dressed her in warm socks and sneakers and then helped her with her jacket. Slowly they made their way to his car. Briefly he wondered how he was going to drive with the throbbing in his leg, but fortunately the hospital wasn't too far away. Traffic was light for a Friday night, and he pulled into his usual handicapped spot within 15 minutes.

Only the emergency lights were on in the clinic. Not even the janitor was around. House was both grateful for that and on edge. He didn't want to be seen by anyone, but after the events of this evening, he felt apprehensive in such an isolated environment. What if Mancini came after them again? He would make sure to lock the exam room door after Taub got here.

He guided Issy into exam room one. He helped her up on the table and then helped her pull off the sweatshirt and bra. As he examined the wounds again, he noted that the butterfly bandages had held up on the ride over and that there had been only a little more bleeding. He knew that she would have a lot of bruises from the beating but he was surprised at how quickly they were popping up. Her left rib cage area looked particularly colorful and then House remembered that Angelo had also kicked her there. He probed the area gently and listened to her breathing with a stethoscope, but he didn't think she had any broken ribs. Issy denied any pain with deep breathing so House concurred that she was just severely bruised. He found a gown in the cabinet and covered her with it.

After sending Taub a quick text message, _'clinic, exam room 1'_, House started gathering the necessary supplies. Issy whimpered when he tried to walk out of the room. It was clear that she didn't want to be left alone. He soothed her as best he could and left the door open so that she could see him as he roamed through the clinic. He had everything assembled on the bedside table when Taub walked in.

The short-statured doctor entered in a huff: "This had better be good to drag me all the way back here on a Friday night."

His mouth dropped open when he saw Issy lying on the exam table_. What the hell was House doing with such a young, good-looking woman? Was she one of his hookers?_ "Um, hi."

Issy replied softly: "Hi."

House made the introductions: "Issy, Dr. Taub. Dr. Taub, this is Issy. She ran into a very bad man tonight."

Taub rolled his eyes: "What did you do to her?"

House's eyes shot daggers into the other doctor. He hissed: "Not me, you moron. A seriously bad man."

House grabbed the top of Issy's gown and with his eyes, asked permission to continue. Issy nodded and House pulled the gown down far enough for Taub to see the cuts.

Taub gasped: "Holy crap! Who did you piss off?"

Issy's lip trembled; she closed her eyes and turned her head away from the doctor.

Taub hastily said: "I'm sorry. That was out of line. Let me just wash up and I'll see what I can do."

His voice faded as he turned his back to them. Shrugging off his coast, he rolled up his sleeves and washed up at the sink. Donning a pair of sterile gloves that House had conveniently left on the table for him; he started examining the wound. After pouring a little saline on a gauze pad, he wiped away the small amount of blood that remained on her skin, then he gently started pulled off the butterfly bandages.

Taub glanced at House. "You put these on?"

House nodded.

"Good job. Kept the edges together nicely. OK, I'll need to irrigate the wounds first and then start stitching. You wanna wash up and help me?"

"Sure."

House limped heavily over to the sink and started washing up. His labored step did not go unnoticed by Taub, but the other doctor decided not to comment on it.

While House was washing up, Taub spoke to Issy. "Issy, I'm afraid that this is going to sting a bit. I need to irrigate the wounds with saline to make sure they're as clean as possible and then I'll start stitching. You are going to feel a pulling sensation as I stitch."

From the sink, House yelled: "Lidocaine! It's right there on the table."

Taub went on: "I can use lidocaine, but we'll have to wait for it to take effect before I can start and since the area to be stitched is so large, it will take several injections to numb the whole area. I have another idea."

He excused himself to Issy, who continued to lay on the table with her eyes closed, although she had been listening to Dr Taub. He walked over to the sink and in a low voice, said: "She seems rather shaken from the whole ordeal. Why don't we give her some IV Ativan? It will calm her down and keep her relaxed while I stitch her up, which should take me about 30 to 45 minutes. By the time she wakes up, the procedure will be over."

House nodded: "Fine, but don't rush the job. Make it look nice."

Taub replied: "I'm sure that's why you called _me_ in the middle of the night. Don't worry; the scarring should be minimal. You wanna tell her or shall I?"

"You go pull the Ativan from the narc cabinet; I'll tell her."

Taub nodded and left the room.

House walked back over to Issy. As he snapped on a pair of gloves, he told her the plan and asked if she was OK with it. She nodded; he bent and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. He was just straightening up when Taub walked back into the room. After he handed the Ativan syringe to House, Taub removed his gloves, pulled on a fresh pair and readied his supplies.

House put a tourniquet on Issy's arm, swabbed her elbow with alcohol, and with his eyes, asked if she was ready. She nodded and he injected 1 mg of the sedating medication into her arm. Within two minutes, her eyes drooped shut and she fell into a light stupor.

Taub and House wasted no time. Her wounds were quickly irrigated and then Taub commenced stitching. House had to admire his handiwork; Taub's stitches were small and refined and yet the man worked quickly with the speed of a highly practiced surgeon.

They worked in silence and then Taub finally had to ask. "So what happened to her? Random act of violence or did she piss someone off?"

"Long story. You don't want to know."

There was something in House's tone that told Taub not to press the issue. He wondered why House was worried about this particular girl so much that he had insisted Taub come back to Princeton to stitch her up? Was she his favorite hooker? Realizing that he would most likely never find out, he decided to chalk it up to yet another strange thing about his boss.

Issy started to regain consciousness, as Taub was halfway finished with the second cut. House gave her another 0.25 mg Ativan bump and she settled down again. Finally they were finished. Issy woke up as they were putting everything away. House rushed to cover her up with the gown and to reassure her that all had gone well. Again Taub had to wonder why House was being so kind to this girl.

In a worried tone, Issy asked: "How does it look?"

House answered honestly: "It doesn't look that great right now. You're bruised and swollen; you have a bunch of black stitches across your chest. But when the stitches are out and the swelling goes down, you will just have a thin line for a scar. Dr. Park Avenue, here, is amazing with a needle and thread. He does quilting on the side, you know."

Taub started to bristle and then realized that House was actually making a joke to try to relax the patient. Issy gave him a small smile and said: "Thank you, Dr. Taub. It was really nice of you to come back to Princeton to take care of me."

He smiled back at her.

_Such a lovely girl. What the hell was she doing with_ _House? And what the hell had happened to her?_

"It's no problem, Issy. Now, a few instructions to help with the healing process. Keep the incision covered and don't get it wet for the first 24 hours. It's OK to shower after that, but pat dry the area immediately afterwards, apply some antibiotic ointment and recover with a bandage. Watch for any signs of infection, like redness, pus or swelling. Call me or House right away if that happens. You can get the stitches out in ten days and I can do it for you, or you can have House do it. After the stitches are out, apply Mederma ointment to the scar three times a day for three months and that will help to fade the scar. You have a bra here with you?"

Issy nodded and pointed to the chair that held her clothes. Taub dug through them and picked up her sports bra. "Good choice. You need to wear a good supportive bra 24/7 while you have the stitches in. You should even sleep in a bra. This way, the skin won't be stretched by the weight of your unsupported breasts and that will help to minimize the scar."

Issy asked: "So I shouldn't run while I have the stitches in?"

"It would be better if you didn't. Running, of course, makes your breasts bounce and that can pull on the stitches and enlarge the scar. You can do most of your daily activities, just try to avoid those that make your breasts move too much, like running or jogging."

House smirked: "Those perky puppies need to rest for a while before you take them out for a run again."

Issy said: "OK. I won't run until my stitches are out."

Taub replied: "Good. Are you ready to try to sit up?"

Issy nodded. House put his hand on the back of her neck and helped ease her to a sitting position. Unsupported, the gown fell away, exposing Issy's entire upper torso.

Taub's eyes widened at the sight of the bruises that colored Issy's breasts and abdominal area. He glanced at House who gave him a stern look and a slight shake of the head. He snatched the bra out of Taub's hand and addressed Issy: "Ready for this?"

Issy nodded and House helped her slip the bra on. He carefully adjusted it around her bandages and then asked: "Comfortable? Nothing's pulling?"

Issy replied softly: "No, it feels OK. May I have my sweatshirt, please? I feel cold."

While Taub reached for her shirt, House felt her forehead. Could she have a temp? Who knows what that bastard had been using that knife for before he cut her with it? There could be a nasty infection already starting to brew in there. He limped over to the cabinet, grabbed the thermometer and started to stick it in her ear."

She cried out: "Wait! Can I at least get my shirt on first?"

House paused as she pulled the shirt over her head. He ended up helping her with that as well, as her limbs still seemed to be quite stiff. Once she was dressed, he stuck the thermometer in her ear. After a minute, it beeped and he saw that her temp was normal, 97.6. She was probably just chilly from being half naked in a cool room, but better safe than sorry.

"I'm going to call you in a script for prophylactic antibiotics, just in case. Who knows what that knife had on it before?"

House couldn't go on. Between Taub's presence and the look of Issy's face, he just shut up before he said too much.

Taub took note of the look on Issy's face too. "House is right. Five days of Keflex won't hurt. By the way, have you had a tetanus shot in the last ten years?"

Issy looked stricken: "Ten years? No. No. I don't think so."

Taub tried to look reassuring: "I'll go grab one from the med cabinet and give it to you before you go, if that's OK."

Issy nodded. After a glance at House, Taub left the room to fetch the vaccine.

Issy grabbed House's arm. "Doc, do you think that there was something on that knife? Like he infected me with something?"

He shook his head and spoke in a reassuring manner: "No, I don't. I'm just saying that he probably didn't sterilize the knife before he used it and that's why I'm worried about infection. And it's a chest wound, so I just want to be careful. You probably don't need the antibiotics, but just to be on the safe side, we'll get them. And I'll check the incision every day to make sure it looks OK."

Taub returned with the tetanus vaccine and while he gave the shot to Issy, House phoned the 24-hour CVS pharmacy that was located between PPTH and home and called in a script for five days worth of Keflex for Issy.

The two men helped Issy climb down from the table. After determining that she was able to make it to the car under her own steam, they headed out to the parking lot. Taub walked them to House's car just in case Issy needed some assistance that House with his bum leg might not be able to provide.

Once they reached the car, Issy turned and thrust out her hand. "Thank you Dr. Taub. It was really nice of you to come back to Princeton to take care of me. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it."

Taub shook her hand. "It was no trouble, Issy. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to call me. House has my number."

Softly, she replied: "Thank you." And then she turned and climbed slowly into the car.

House and Taub just looked at each other for a moment and then House said: "Thanks."

Taub acknowledged his words with a nod and the two men headed to their cars. As Taub walked across the parking lot, he continued to ponder the mysterious life of his new boss.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

After a quick stop at CVS for the prescription, House headed directly home. The first thing they saw when they walked in the door was the discarded pizza box and Issy's ruined clothes. She looked stricken, but started to clean things up. House stopped her. "I'll take care of this. Are you hungry? We never had dinner."

Issy shook her head. "I'm not hungry. Do you want me to make you something?"

"No, I'm fine. How about just some milk and cookies so that you have something on your stomach when you take the Keflex?"

Issy nodded. "OK."

He asked her to prepare the snack while he cleaned up the mess. The pizza box was taken straight out back to the trashcan while he threw the clothing into a plastic bag. It could be evidence and he didn't want to destroy it just yet, not until he talked to a certain person whom he planned to call first thing tomorrow morning.

Issy bought two glasses of milk to the coffee table and then returned to the kitchen for the plate of cookies. She was glad that she had made oatmeal scotchies yesterday, as they were her favorite comfort cookie. She needed comfort. She wanted to pull Pookie out of her backpack and hug him, but she didn't want to do that in front of Doc. Even though he would probably be understanding about it, she just didn't feel that she could. It was just too private to do in front of someone else. Her body ached all over and she wondered how she was going to be able to sleep, especially since she needed to wear a bra to bed. She hadn't slept in a bra since she was homeless and it was going to feel weird. How would Doc feel about it? He liked cuddling up to her naked body while he slept. Well, it probably didn't matter too much any more. She was sure that he would find her completely repulsive now that he had witnessed her total degradation at the hands of Mancini.

She had never even thought to call and quit the job. Once things were going well with Doc, she completely forgot about the place. It's amazing how the past has a horrible way of catching up to you sometimes. She just hoped that Mancini had gotten his fill of torturing her and would not come back. To be on the safe side, Issy made a mental note to carefully check the peephole before opening the door in the future and to watch her back at all times.

House joined her on the couch and he fired up the remote, flipping around and finally settling on a South Park marathon. The outrageous cartoon was a perfect distraction. They consumed their cookies and milk while watching two episodes. At the end of the second show, House got up and took Issy's glass to the kitchen for a refill, snagging the CVS bag on the way back.

He ripped open the bag and pulled out two bottles. Pointing to the first bottle, he said: "Keflex 250 mg. Take one capsule four times a day until it's finished. I ordered five days worth. If it looks like the wound is getting infected, I'll have you take it longer or maybe switch antibiotics. I want you to start it tonight. The other bottle is just some ibuprofen. You're going to be really sore in the morning. Take 800 mg tonight and that will help. I'm also giving you one of these."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his vial of Vicodin.

Issy's eyes widened: "That's _your_ Vicodin! I can't take that."

House chuckled: "You can take _one_. I don't want the pain keeping you awake all night."

"You want me to take the Keflex, 800 mg of ibuprofen and a Vicodin?"

"Yep. It's perfectly safe and I think it will really help you."

She gave him a smirk: "Well, when I sleep until noon, I'll just say I was following doctor's orders."

House smiled. He could only hope that she'd sleep until noon. It would be good for her. Knowing Issy, she'd be up at 9:00 and trying to make him happy, either in the bedroom or in the kitchen. She needed to give her efforts a rest for a few days and give herself time to heal. At least she had the weekend to recover and the bruises were all on parts of her body that could be covered with clothing. Those bruises were deep and they were going to take at least a week to fade away. Despite the fact that Mancini had slapped her several times, at least she hadn't ended up with a black eye. He was glad that she didn't have to explain that come Monday morning.

The three Vicodins that he had taken earlier had only managed to dull the pain; with all the standing and walking, they had already worn off. He'd take another three, toss down 800 mg of ibuprofen himself and hope for a few hours of sleep.

They washed down their pills and then headed down the hall. House backtracked to make sure that the dead bolt was thrown and the chain was on the front door. After brushing their teeth, they headed into the bedroom. Issy pondered what to wear to bed. She had to keep her bra on and it seemed weird to sleep in just a bra. Perhaps she should put on a long tee shirt. She wasn't sure how House felt about her in a physical sense. Even though she hadn't seen her body yet, she knew that she was covered with bruises. She'd seen the look of horror on Dr. Taub's face and she was sure that she was perfectly frightful. Maybe she should put on pajamas and hide as much of her body as she could.

Issy took so long thinking about what to wear to bed that House had already stripped down to his boxers before he noticed that she was just standing there, staring off into space. He moved around to her side of the bed and pulled her into the V of his legs. Rubbing his hands gently up and down her arms, he asked: "What's the matter?"

In a plaintive voice, she answered: "I don't know what to wear to bed."

He chuckled: "It's not a formal occasion. You just need to wear a bra. Is the one you have on comfortable enough to sleep in?"

She nodded. "Yeah, it will be fine. I just didn't know what else to wear over it. I figured that, you know, you wouldn't really want me to be naked with you."

He looked genuinely puzzled. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Cuz I'm all bruised and ugly and you saw. _That."_

House was at a loss of what to say to her. He thought of Eve, the girl from the clinic who had been raped and had only wanted to talk to him. He hadn't known what to say then either, but somehow he had been able to connect with her.

"Issy. I don't know what it's like to be raped. A patient once described it to me as a soul-destroying experience. And it's happened to you, more times than any one person should have to endure. This time, in addition to enduring the agony of the act, you have the extra onus of having your boyfriend watch your humiliation."

He stroked her cheek. "And now you think that I won't desire you anymore."

She nodded, jaw trembling and her face scrunched up as she tried hard not to cry. Her hands gripped his shoulders tightly.

His tone was gentle. "Issy. It's not true. I still desire you. I don't think either of us is really in the mood tonight, but in few days or a week, when we both physically feel better, it will happen again. As to what you should wear to bed tonight, aside from the bra, you can be naked as far as I'm concerned. But maybe you feel extra vulnerable being naked tonight. That's OK. Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable. You got some nice soft pajamas? Or maybe you want to wear one of my tee shirts?"

The reply burst out of Issy. "Yes!"

He let out a small chuckle. "You want to wear one of my tee shirts?"

He had never offered to let her wear one of his shirts before. She nodded shyly. "Yes, please."

"OK. And you know what? I've got the perfect one for you to wear."

She moved aside to let him up and he limped over to the dresser. He dug for a moment and then pulled out an old black tee shirt with a colorful psychedelic design on the front. He'd had it for more years than he could remember.

Issy read the single word on the shirt and then smiled: "_Cream_. That's awesome. And you're OK with me wearing it?"

He rolled his eyes. "Who's the biggest Eric Clapton fan in this room? Of course, you can wear it."

He helped her undress. When she was naked, except for the bra, he checked her bandage to make sure it was secure and then he helped her pull the tee shirt on. The shirt had shrunk over the years and on Issy, it fell just to her hip level, leaving certain tantalizing body parts available for his viewing pleasure.

He smiled seeing her short curlies peeking out underneath his shirt and on impulse he bent down and nuzzled her hair. She giggled. Pleased with her response, House kissed her belly gently and then sat on the bed next to her.

She touched his cheek. "You saved me, you know."

He gave her a puzzled look.

"If you hadn't wanted me to let my hair grow back, he would have fucked me instead of what he did."

Astonished by her words, he could only shake his head. "You give me too much credit."

"But it's the truth. That's what stopped him."

She yawned suddenly and he asked: "Is the Vicodin kicking in?"

"I think so. I feel kinda hazy."

"Good. C'mon, let's get under the covers."

He tucked her in and then limped around to his side. He briefly considered leaving his boxers on for her comfort, but figured that she might better appreciate the normalcy of him sleeping in the nude as usual. His boxers hit the floor and he climbed in beside her.

Usually they spooned, her back to his front, but tonight she snuggled up to his chest, resting her head on his shoulder. His arms circled her gently and he pulled her as close as he dared.

"S'alright?"

Her voice took on a sleepy quality. "Yes, this is good."

He kissed her cheek. "Good night baby. Wake me if you need anything."

She planted a little kiss on his neck. "OK. Thank you."

He muttered: "You don't have to thank me for that."

Issy's only response was a contented sigh. She felt warm and safe in his arms. This was the comfort that she craved. She had to admit that this was better than hugging Pookie even. But she knew better than to get used to this. He could still change his mind and kick her out at any time. Even if he did let her stay until June, there was a time limit on this comfort. It wouldn't last forever. She let out another contented sigh and felt him kiss her hair. She smiled against his skin, happy to accept any amount of comfort that he was willing to give her. Once she felt better, she would make it up to him.

House couldn't believe her words that she felt he had saved her from vaginal rape just because he had wanted her to stop waxing her pubic region. He hadn't been able to save her from that bastard's acts and that made him feel like crap. Theirs might be just a business arrangement, but he felt this primal need to protect her. She was _his_ woman and no one else could have her.

Issy let out a contented sounding sigh and he kissed the top of her head. She seemed relaxed now and he hoped that she felt safe enough to sleep. No one would hurt her again if he could help it. She was his, at least until June.

HOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMDHOUSEMD

A feeling of coldness finally dragged House from his slumber. It was getting to be that time of year when he needed to remember to put the heat on at night. His leg really hated the cold. He reached for his favorite warm body, but found her side of the bed empty. Puzzled, one eye popped open and he scanned the room for her. _Shit._ _Where was she? _

He was just about to get out of bed and start a search when he heard the toilet flush. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. _She's just in the bathroom, you idiot. You'll have to let her out of your sight sooner or_ _later._

Issy was walking stiffly when she entered the room. In the light of day, her bruises looked even worse than before and that's with the tee shirt hiding the ones on her torso. House threw back the covers on her side of the bed as a welcoming gesture and she crawled right in. He tucked the blankets around her and drew her into his arms.

She snuggled into his chest. "I feel like I've been hit by a truck."

He gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead and said: "You were, baby. An Italian garbage truck. How did you sleep?"

She snuggled infinitesimally closer to him. "Not too bad. I think the Vicodin really helped. How's your leg feel?"

"It's never good in the morning, especially with the cold. Maybe it's somewhat worse than usual but I'll live."

Her voice hitched: "I'm so sorry that you got caught in the middle of this."

"This isn't your fault."

She buried her face in his chest and he curled his body protectively around her.

A sob escaped and she confessed: "I'm so scared."

"Scared that he's gonna come back?"

She nodded.

"I don't think he's gonna come back, but I got someone that I'm gonna call today. He's got connections and maybe he can help."

Her reply was a whisper. "OK."

They lay in silence for a little while and then Issy asked: "Are you h-hungry? I could m-make some b-breakfast."

The stuttering meant that her anxiety was through the roof. He kissed the top of her head and said: "We'll get up in a little while and make something together, OK? You need to eat and take your Keflex and some more Motrin."

"OK."

She buried her face in his chest again and after a moment, he felt her shoulders shake with silent cries. He wasn't surprised that she was crying, only that she was doing it so quietly. She hadn't cried out last night while she was being beaten either. How had she managed to hold that in? It had to have been excruciatingly painful judging from the few blows that House himself had taken. House remembered that his dad would beat him harder if he cried during his childhood beatings. He had learned early on to hold it in and cry later, in his room when no one could see him. Had that been true for Issy too?

He held her tighter and stroked her hair. "It's OK, Issy. It's OK to cry. I'm here; I've got you."

It seemed as if his words make her sob harder, although she still made no sound. _Damn it!_ He wasn't very good at soothing crying women; he never could figure out the right thing to say. He continued to hold her and rubbed her back while she wept.

Finally it seemed as if she had cried herself out, or at least her shoulders stopped shaking. In a small voice, she said: "Greg?"

He looked down at her pale tear-streaked face and his heart went out to her. What was it about her that made him want to wrap her up in cotton batting and protect her from the evils of the world?

He brushed away a tear with his thumb and said: "Yeah, baby?"

"You've b-been so good to me. I d-don't w-want to put you in d-danger. If y-you t-think that M-mancini is gonna come b-back, I'll go away."

"Where would you go?"

She shrugged: "Doesn't m-matter, as long as I'm n-not here, then he w-won't b-bother you."

He really needed to make that phone call. "You're not going anywhere. I'm not kicking you out."

"I know t-that. I just t-thought it w-would be b-better if I left, for your sake."

"Do you want to leave?"

This time the sob escaped: "No. I like it here with you. It's so nice and safe and warm."

Safe and warm. A home and a dog. After years of abuse and homelessness, this kid didn't want much, did she? If he were an emotional 'girl' like Wilson, he'd probably be crying by now. Good thing for him that he was a man and he could just clear his throat and get that emotional crap out of his system.

He patted her back and kissed her forehead. "So it's settled; you're staying. C'mon let's go to the kitchen and rustle up something to eat. We both need to take our medicine."

House slowly eased himself to a sitting position. Not only did his thigh ache terribly, the scar had turned an ugly shade of purple, thanks to that blackjack. He laid his hand over his scar, not wanting Issy to see the bruise, but even the weight of his own hand hurt and he was compelled to remove it.

He watched as Issy walked stiffly to the dresser and pulled out a tee shirt and pajama bottoms for him. Under ordinary circumstances, watching her cute tuckus peeking out under the hem of his tee shirt would have been titillating, but since her sexy ass was several shades of black and blue, it was not nearly as pleasant as it could have been.

She walked back to the bed with his clothes. He could tell the moment that her eyes landed on his scar because her face fell and her lip started trembling. Hoping to stop a fresh flood of tears, he pulled her in between his legs and said: "It's not your fault. It's just a bruise and it will go away. Thanks for getting me some clothes. Now, have you got some nice soft jammie bottoms to wear?"

She nodded: "I've got another pair of lounge pants."

"Put those on and we'll go find some breakfast."

Once they were suitably attired, they headed to the kitchen. House toasted some frozen bagels while Issy scrambled some eggs. After they had eaten, they both popped their pills. House offered Issy another Vicodin, but she turned him down.

"I'll just stick with the Motrin for now. I don't want to be feeling hazy all day."

"Well, if you are hurting, just ask me for one. And I'll give you one at bedtime to help you sleep."

"One at bedtime would be good. I really think it did help me sleep."

While Issy took the few dishes to the kitchen to wash up, House slipped into the bedroom to make his call. He scrolled through his contacts until he found the number he wanted and then he hit 'send'.

When the answering party picked up, House said: "It's House. You said I should call you if I needed anything."

"Well, Dr. House, it's been a while. Nice to hear from you. What is it that I can do for you?"

"Not over the phone. I know it is a huge inconvenience, but could you possibly come over to my place and I'll explain?"

"For you, Dr. House, I will. Shall we say around 12:30?"

That would be great. My address is."

"I know where you live, Dr. House. See you at 12:30."

The line went dead. House closed the phone and wondered if his contact would be able to help them or not.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Issy seemed disinclined to do anything except curl up on the sofa and watch TV, so House sat with her. After watching a couple of episodes of 'Sponge Bob' on Nickelodeon, Issy flipped over to TV Land for 'Hogan's Heroes'.

At a commercial break, House happened to glance at the clock. _Crap!_ It was 12:15 and they were still in their pajamas.

"Issy, remember I mentioned someone who might be able to help us? He'll be here at 12:30. I'm going to change clothes before he gets here."

She glanced down at her attire and said: "Maybe I should change too."

House had managed to pull on boxers, jeans and a tee shirt before the doorbell rang. Issy was still in the middle of finding something that was comfortable to wear and looked more decent than her current outfit.

He kissed her cheek: "I'll get the door. You come on out when you're dressed."

House limped quickly down the hall and checked the peephole. Yep, it was the man that he expected. He took off the chain, turned the deadbolt and opened the door.

"Thanks for coming on such short notice."

Bill Arnello stepped into the room. "Hey, for the doctor who saved my brother, it is no trouble. What can I do for you?"

"It's a bit of a story. Have a seat. Can I get you a drink, scotch, beer, coffee?"

"A beer would be fine, thank you."

House limped into the kitchen, grabbed two bottles of Heineken and returned to the living room. The two men popped the tops and sat down on opposite ends of the couch. After taking a sip of beer, Bill got right down to business.

"So what can I help you with?"

For once House was at a loss for words. How much detail did he need to give Arnello? Surely he didn't need to tell him about the deal with Issy and the bet with Wilson. He should just stick to the basic facts.

"I have a new girlfriend; she lives with me. Her former employer dropped by to see her last night and he was not in a happy mood. Apparently she left his place of employment and didn't give adequate notice so he decided that he needed to take it out on her in a rather physical way."

"Just how physical are we talking?"

"Blackjack and switchblade."

Arnello's eyebrows rose. "Seems rather violent for merely quitting a job. May I inquire whom her former employer was?"

"You sure can. Guido Mancini."

+++ HOUSE MD +++++++ HOUSE MD +++++++

Issy finally settled on some black stretch pants and a blue sweater. The clothes were soft on her painful flesh and would hide all of her bruises. She put on a pair of thick socks to keep her feet warm and ran a brush through her hair. A glance in the mirror told her that she was decent enough and she opened the bedroom door. She could hear House talking to another man, whose voice sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn't quite place it.

She crept slowly down the hall, trying to place the voice. Peering around the corner into the living room, she could just see the arm of the other man as it rested over the back of the couch. House's back was to her and his body blocked most of the view of the other man.

As she leaned to the left to try to catch a glimpse of him, the other man said: "Mancini? She was one of Mancini's girls? Do you realize what type of job she had?"

Issy's eyes grew wide when she saw his face. She covered her mouth with her hands to keep from screaming out loud. _He_ was Greg's contact? Oh, no, this was bad. He couldn't see her. She was sure that he would recognize her and who knew what would happen then? As Issy turned to creep back to the bedroom, her socked feet slipped on the wood floor and she stumbled into the wall. The loud noise made both men turn in her direction.

Issy was so panicked that she didn't feel any pain from the impact. She couldn't move as she felt both pairs of eyes boring into her.

House's expression was concerned, but the man next to him just snorted: "_Randi? _Holy shit! Randi is your girlfriend? Oh House, you gotta be kidding me. It's one thing to screw the bimbos, but to have one move in with you is just asking for trouble."

House looked back and forth between Issy and Arnello. Issy looked terrified and Arnello had called her 'Randi'. _What the fuck was going on?_

"You two know each other?"

Arnello scoffed: "We've met, but I don't _know_ her, as in the biblical sense. I prefer blondes when I go to the club. Screwing a brunette is like screwing my wife. I want a change of scenery, you get me?"

Reminding himself that Arnello was in the mob and that he wanted his help, House checked his angry retort. He nodded to acknowledge Arnello's statement and then turned back to Issy. In a gentle voice, he said: "Come over here, Issy."

He patted the arm of the couch and Issy drifted over to him, perching her butt on the designated spot. She didn't dare look Arnello in the eyes; instead she kept her gaze on House's left knee. House placed an arm protectively around her waist and she leaned into the contact.

Arnello stared at Issy for a moment and then addressed House: "So tell me the whole story."

House reiterated the whole story. When he had finished detailing the extent of Issy's injuries, he asked: "So now what? You know the guy. Is this it or will he be coming back for more?"

Arnello tapped his finger against the beer bottle. "As long as Randi doesn't try to find a job in another club, he should leave her alone. No one with half a brain would hire her anyway with Guido's marks on her. But he is expecting you to kick her out and when he finds out that you're not, I'm not sure how he'll react. The sugar daddies always kick the whores out after Guido marks 'em."

House responded with a touch of anger in his voice. "She's not a whore anymore, and I'm not kicking her out."

Arnello tilted his head to one side and smirked: "Then, you might be taking a chance on a reoccurrence of his wrath."

Issy finally got brave enough to say something. Still not daring to look him in the eye, she asked: "Mr. Arnello, if I leave, would that be enough so that Mr. Mancini won't hurt Greg again?"

Arnello's eyes narrowed: "Again? He did something to you, House?"

House muttered: "It's nothing."

Issy cried out: "It's not nothing. He hit Greg several times on his bad leg with the blackjack. He's got a huge bruise there."

She was close to tears: "Mr. Arnello, please. I don't want anything to happen to Greg. Please, can you ask Mr. Mancini to not hurt Greg again?"

Arnello sat back for a moment and sipped his beer while giving them a contemplative look. "I can make a request that Dr. House is off-limits to any further activity and I expect that my request will be granted. But I can't say the same thing about you, Randi."

House hissed: "Her name is Issy."

Arnello gave him a nod. "He may be finished with you, _Issy_, or maybe not. You insulted him by leaving him with no notice and by stealing one of his customers away from the club. Frankly, I'm surprised that he did so little to you. Your friend Marcy had it a lot worse, but then he had to go to Boston to take care of her. I think that made him extra mad. He had his fun and then he let Angelo play with her. Angelo doesn't play nice."

Issy's heart sunk, wondering what had happened to Marcy. She pleaded: "Mr. Arnello, I'm very remorseful. I really truly meant no disrespect to Mr. Mancini. I just got so caught up with school and taking care of Greg that I completely forgot to call him. I promise that I won't try to get another job or do anything that would upset Mr. Mancini. Is there any way that Greg can have some assurance that he won't be injured again?"

"I already told you. I'll speak to him about Dr. House, but you."

She nodded woodenly: "He might come after me again."

"I'll let him know that you are truly remorseful. Perhaps that will sway him. He has other playthings to keep him amused, so perhaps now he won't need to find his fun here."

"Thank you Mr. Arnello. I'm very grateful."

He gave her an evil smile. "How grateful?"

Issy felt a cold chill run up her spine. In a respectful tone, she replied: "Very grateful, sir."

Arnello leaned back against the couch and spread his legs. "This grateful?"

Issy gulped: "If you'd like, sir."

She didn't dare look at House as she moved towards Mr. Arnello. She started to kneel in front of him; he made a motion with his hand to stop her and then he laughed. "I'm telling ya, House, once a whore, always a whore. They'll get on their knees at the drop of a Grant, won't they? I've never sampled this one, but she must be good if you let her move in with you."

Issy slunk away, completely embarrassed by Arnello's words. She stepped behind House so that she wouldn't have to see the look on his face. She was certain that he would be completely revolted by what she had attempted to do, despite her good intentions.

Arnello rose and headed to the door. "I'll speak to Mancini and let you know what he says. But if I were you, I'd toss the whore out on the street. It would be a lot less trouble for you that way. Thanks for the beer."

The door slammed behind him and the apartment was silent for a few minutes.

House scrubbed his hands over his face and then turned to face Issy. "You were going to blow him? Right in front of me? Last night was _rape_. This, this."

He waved his hand around in the air, at a complete loss for words.

Issy cried out: "To protect you! I would have done it to protect you! I thought if I did what he wanted, he would put out the word that you weren't to be messed with."

House's anger rose: "Would you have _fucked_ him too if that's what he wanted?"

_Why wasn't he getting this? His life was much more important than her_ _own. What difference would it make if she screwed one more guy? It's not like she was a virgin or something._

She yelled back: "Yes, if it meant protecting you, I would have."

He stared at her, completely stunned and then he sputtered: "You, you would've done it?"

She pleaded for his understanding: "I'd do anything I could to protect you. I don't want anything bad to happen to you."

_No, no, no. That's not the way it was supposed to be. He was the man; he was supposed to protect her. Maybe if he weren't so old and so crippled she wouldn't feel like she had to protect him._

He growled: "I don't want you spreading your legs to protect me. Christ, that makes me feel like I'm, I'm, I don't know what! Just. Just leave me alone. Get out of my face."

Issy fled down the hall to the bedroom.

+++ HOUSE MD ++++ HOUSE MD ++++++

House stalked over to the liquor cabinet and poured himself two fingers of Maker's Mark. He slugged that back and poured himself another one, which he took over to the piano. He sounded out a few chords and then slammed into Billy Joel's 'Angry Young Man'. At that particular moment, he needed to pound the ivories hard or he'd be pounding his fist through the door. Arnello had some nerve, trying to get Issy to blow him for protection _right in_ _front of him_. House knew he'd done that for show, but it still pissed him off. He slammed his fingers on the keys. _Fuck, fuck, fuck!_

And Issy. Jesus Christ, would that girl ever find some self-esteem? Maybe he was asking too much of her; she'd had too much trauma in her life and the events of last night had not helped any. She was willing to submit to Arnello because she thought it would protect _him_ from further harm. House was sure that nothing could be further from the truth; if those guys wanted to mess with you, they would, no matter what you tried to do to dissuade them.

Well, fuck them. He wasn't tossing Issy out, no matter what the bastards suggested. As much as he kept reminding himself that this was just a business arrangement, he had grown rather fond of her. Not only was she great in the bedroom and the kitchen, she was also easy to be around, much more so than any other woman he had ever known. She seemed to delight in just hanging with him, watching TV or playing video games. He had to admit that having a twenty-five-year-old hanging on his every word and action was very flattering to his old ego. He wanted her to succeed; he wanted her to have her small dream of a home and dog. She deserved that at least, after all she had been through.

His piano playing grew melancholy. He found himself playing Billy Joel's 'I Love You Just the Way You Are' and shook his head forcefully. He didn't love her, but he did like her enough to let her know that he wasn't really mad at _her_. He glanced up at the couch and was somewhat surprised that she wasn't curled up in her spot listening to him play. Then he remembered that he had told her to get out of his face. She must be in the bedroom. Hoping that she wasn't crying again, he slugged down the rest of his bourbon and headed down the hall.

++++ HOUSE MD ++++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy closed the bedroom door behind her. What was she going to do now? He had been so supportive and now he was angry with her. Didn't he understand that she didn't really want to give Arnello a blowjob? She was only doing it to buy him some protection. Well, this was it. She was sure that he was going to kick her out now. Even his piano playing sounded angry.

She reached under the bed and pulled out her backpack. Looking around the room, she tried to find a corner where she could hide, but the room was packed with so much furniture that there wasn't an empty corner. Finally she edged the chair out a little ways from the wall and crawled behind it. It was a tight fit and her aching body protested from the movements necessary to get behind the chair but she ignored them. Her bruised butt screamed as she plopped herself down on the wood floor, but she didn't even let out a whimper. What was the point? There was no one to listen.

No, wait. There was Pookie. She opened the backpack and pulled out the old stuffed dog. She hugged him and let the tears come. She knew now that she would never have a home and a real live dog. It was just never going to happen. She pulled out her drawing pad and flipped the pages until she got to the blue cottage with the rose bushes. That one was probably her favorite, it just looked so cozy and nice. With one finger, she petted the black dog that stood in the middle of the yard.

She should have known that she would never break free of her old life. It just wasn't fair; she tried so hard. She had studied and worked, scrimped and saved, gotten down on her knees and spread her legs and it was all for naught. How could she finish school now without this living arrangement? It didn't seem possible to live in her car for the next six months and keep up with her schoolwork. Even if she gave up her cell phone and didn't pay her car insurance, the money she had would only go so far and then what would she do? Should she try to move out of the tri-state area and start over? Going south seemed like a good idea. She always wanted to live somewhere warmer and Atlanta was a nice big city to get lost in. Surely a city of that size would have tons of clubs and maybe she'd find one that wouldn't realize the significance of those scars on her breasts.

Shit. She hadn't ever seen them yet; she didn't even know how bad they were. They might be so hideous that no one would want to hire her. It was bad enough being a whore in the clubs; there was no way that she was going to stroll the streets.

With one arm, she hugged Pookie closer and with the other hand, she traced her finger over the drawing of the blue cottage. She had almost made it. She'd given it her best shot. Now it was time to let go of the dream. After that little drama with Arnello, House was certain to kick her out this weekend. She wouldn't bother packing her things. She'd just take Pookie and drive to the bridge. House could just throw all her crap away. After all, she wasn't going to need it where she was going.

++++ HOUSE MD +++++ HOUSE MD ++++

House was surprised to find the bedroom door closed. He opened it slowly, fully expecting to see her curled up in a little ball on the bed, but she wasn't there. His eyes circumnavigated the room, but he didn't see her. Where the hell was she? Under the bed? In the closet? He took two steps towards the closet and then he realized that the chair had been moved. It was now a good two feet away from the wall. He walked slowly over to it and peered behind it. There was Issy, leaning against the corner and looking completely forlorn. She was hugging that dirty stuffed dog with one arm and touching one of her drawings with the other. He frowned; it was as if she was petting the dog in the picture. How weird was that?

He watched her for a moment and then she looked up at him. Her eyes were deep blue pools, brimming with unshed tears. She whispered: "I'll go."

"Go where?"

"Away."

"Away where?"

"Far away, where they can't find me. Then they won't bother you again."

"You'd sacrifice yourself for me?"

She nodded: "Uh, huh."

"Why?"

She stared at him in confusion. _Wasn't it obvious?_ "Your life is more important."

"Says who?"

"Anybody with half a brain. You're a doctor; you save lives. You have family and friends. I'm just a whore."

"You're not a whore."

"Yes, I am. Didn't you hear what he said?"

"I don't give a rat's ass what he said. He wanted to see how far you'd go to protect me. He was testing you."

Issy chewed her lip for a moment and then asked: "Did I pass or fail?"

House sighed: "I don't know what the mob's criteria is. I only know mine. Please come out from behind there. I hate seeing you sit on the floor with all the dust bunnies."

Issy shoved her pad back into the pack and stood up. She still had Pookie clutched tightly in her left arm. House extended his arm and she handed him her pack, which he set down on the seat and then he helped her out from behind the chair.

He led her over to the bed and in a soft voice, said: "Lie down?"

It was said as a request, not a command, but Issy promptly lay down on the bed anyway. She started to place the stuffed dog on the floor, but House stopped her. "It's OK. Hang on to him."

She clutched the dog to her chest and watched as he walked around the bed and climbed in on his side. Lying on his left side, he looked at her for a long moment, and then tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. "Issy, I don't like anyone telling me what to do. I barely tolerate Cuddy and that's only because she is my boss and I _still_ fight her every step of the way. But these wise guys, they are not going to tell me who I can or cannot live with. They are not the boss of me or you for that matter. As I told you earlier, I want you to stay. Nothing more is going to happen to us. I saved Arnello's brother's life. He _owes_ me. I didn't mention that before because he would probably take it as disrespect if I threw that in his face."

"Especially in front of me."

He had to admit that there was some truth to her words. "If Arnello can set things right, he'll do it. If he can't, we'll figure out something else. You told me earlier that you liked it here, that you wanted to stay. Is that still true?"

She nodded: "As long as my presence doesn't put you in any danger, yes, I'd like to stay."

He gave her a warm smile. "Then it's settled. Again. C'mere."

Issy snuggled into his arms. "Oh, wait. Let me put the dog down, he's kinda smelly."

House crushed her to his chest, the dog in between them. "Shhh, it's OK. Hold onto him. A House and a dog, that's what you want, isn't it? Well, here we are."

Issy had to giggle, he was right. It wasn't exactly the house and dog that was pictured in her drawings, but the presence of the two of them gave her comfort. If she never got the blue cottage with the rose bushes and the black Lab, but got to keep the House and dog that were in her arms at the moment, she could be content with that. Very content.

She nestled her head on his shoulder and felt his lips kiss the top of her head. Feeling safe and warm, Issy dropped off into a deep sleep.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

They woke up in the middle of the afternoon, feeling somewhat refreshed after their nap. However when House took a big stretch and the stench escaped from his armpits, they mutually decided it was time to bathe. Issy couldn't get her stitches wet just yet, so she ran a bath for the two of them.

While the tub was filling up, Issy had to face the moment of truth. She was finally about to see the full extent of her injuries. She stripped off and House assisted her with removing the bra, then he gently peeled off the bandage.

He examined it carefully and then said: "It's doing fine. No redness or any other signs of infection. It is still swollen and bruised, though. Are you ready to see it?"

"I guess I have to."

She turned and faced the mirror. When her gaze drifted up and took in her full image, she gasped in horror. The purple splotches seemed to outnumber the flesh colored parts and the jagged line of black stitches across her breasts was something out of a Frankenstein movie.

"Oh, my God, I look horrible."

He laid his hands gently on her shoulders. "It's bad right now. But in ten days, the bruises will have faded and the stitches can come out. Taub closed the wounds very well. You should have only a thin white line remaining when everything has healed up. And if you use the Mederma like he suggested, that will help it fade even more."

Issy leaned back against his body and felt his flaccid cock against her ass cheeks. "I'm too ugly now to wake up your cock."

House chuckled: "Oh, no, you're not."

He rubbed against her and they both felt the stirrings of Mt. Gregory. "See, baby, the sun always rises for you. I just don't want to hurt you. I don't want to put too much pressure on your bruises or jiggle your jugs too much right now. Let's give it a couple of days and see how you're feeling, OK?"

She grasped his cock in her hand and started to pump. "I know lots of ways to make you happy."

He sighed with pleasure at her touch: "I know you do. I know a few tricks myself. Maybe we'll explore a little oral pleasure later. Right now, I'm going to pop another Vicodin and get in the tub. You joining me?"

She gave his cock one last little squeeze and said: "I'll pass on the Vicodin, but I'll join you in the tub."

House opened the medicine cabinet and took out his vial. As he shook one tablet into his hand, Issy's eyes suddenly flew open.

"Oh, crap!"

"What is it?"

She reached past him and grabbed her dialpak from the cabinet. "I forgot to take my pill last night."

"Relax, it's OK. Just take it now and take the next one at your usual time tonight. It'll be fine. We'll need to use condoms for the rest of this cycle anyway because the Keflex will screw up the effectiveness of the pills."

"Oh, that's right. Good thing you're a doctor and you know these things."

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "I know lots of things, baby. C'mon. Let's get in the tub. I'll let you wash my stinky pits."

Issy giggled: "Now that's a deal that a girl can't refuse."

They each dry-swallowed their pills and then headed over to the tub.

The bath was just what they both needed. They spent some time relaxing and caressing each other in the warm water and then they washed each other. Issy gave House's pits an especially good soaping, while House gently washed Issy's body, managing to keep the stitches from getting wet. Issy decided to wait and wash her hair tomorrow when she would be able to take a shower, but she did give House a shampoo.

After donning clean clothes, they headed back out to the living room, parked themselves on the couch and spent the rest of the day improving their scores on Grand Theft Auto. When they tired of the game, Issy found a 'Fawlty Towers' marathon on PBS and they settled in to watch that. She considered calling Marcy, but decided to wait until tomorrow, feeling unable to deal with any additional angst tonight.

House ordered Chinese food to be delivered for dinner; he carefully checked the peephole before opening the door to accept the food. It was their usual guy and House let out a sigh of relief. He wondered how long it would take for him to be able to open the door again without his heart racing and his palms sweating.

They ate Beef Lo Mein, Hunan Chicken and sesame noodles straight out of the containers as they continued to watch Basil Fawlty and his antics. When they had stuffed themselves, Issy grabbed a fortune cookie and broke it open. She read it silently and sat there staring at it for a moment.

Intrigued by her silence, he asked: "What's it say?"

Issy read in a quiet voice: _"Your blessing is no more than being safe and sound for the whole lifetime."_

She looked up at him, eyes wide in wonder. "Is that amazing or what? Think that could be true?"

He didn't want to squash her pleasure about the fortune. They were random and silly, but Issy needed those reassuring words right now.

"Why not? That's a pretty cool one, babe. Wanna hear mine?"

House grabbed the remaining cookie and broke it open. He read the fortune and laughed.

Issy asked eagerly: "What's it say?"

House smirked as he read: _"Be mischievous and you will never be lonesome."_

They both cracked up at that saying. Issy said: "You'll have to show that one to Wilson. He'll love it."

House was about to respond when his cell phone rang. He frowned; it was late and he hoped it wasn't a new patient. He didn't want to leave Issy alone tonight of all nights.

He checked the Caller ID, motioned her to be quiet and then flipped the phone open.

"House."

"The word on the street is that our friend is not at all interested in paying you a repeat visit."

In a casual tone, House replied: "Well, that's fine. Does that also include my girlfriend?"

"That was a little harder to confirm. However, he has several new very hot playmates so I think he'll be busy for a while. I would just advise you both to keep a low profile."

"Will do. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Good luck. I hope she's worth it."

In his most sincere tone, House said: "She is."

Arnello chuckled: "That good, huh? I should have taken her up on her offer. Perhaps another time?"

Before House could formulate a retort, Arnello laughed again and abruptly ended the call.

House closed his phone and tossed it on the coffee table. "Son of a bitch!"

Issy looked frightened. She clutched his arm and asked: "What did he say?"

"I don't think Mancini will be bothering us again. Arnello says he's busy with some new girls but that we should just keep a low profile."

"Well, that's good, right? What did he say that pissed you off?"

House shook his head: "A reference to your _former_ profession."

Issy snuggled up next to him and wrapped her arms around him. "Who cares what he says, as long as he gets results, right? We're gonna be OK, right?"

He pulled her onto his good leg and buried his face in her shoulder. Her fingers caressed the back of his neck; he squeezed her tighter, relishing the warmth of her body. "Yeah, babe. We're gonna be OK."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy felt somewhat better when she woke up on Sunday morning. House had once again given her a Vicodin before bedtime and it had helped her sleep. She crept out of bed before he woke up and headed to the kitchen. By the time he staggered out to the kitchen, lured by the smell of coffee, she had already made a half a batch of pancakes.

They ate breakfast and then promptly went back to bed. It was the laziest weekend that Issy could ever remember having. Even Wilson was not coming over for their usual Sunday afternoon football fest; he had a date to attend a gallery opening with Debbie from accounting. House was actually pleased about that. He was concerned that if Wilson spent enough time with Issy, he might notice her stiff movements or accidentally see a bruise. The less time he spent with her right now, the better. Unfortunately, Issy was working on the oncology floor this month, but at least her scrubs would completely cover her bruised places and hopefully she wouldn't be in close enough proximity to Wilson that he would notice anything. Thanksgiving was a slight problem, since they had already invited him over and House knew that Issy would not want to uninvite him. But the holiday was still four days away, and Issy should be feeling better by then.

Issy felt quite refreshed when she woke up from their late morning nap, so much so, that she decided to wake House up in that certain way that a man really likes.

House woke with a smile on his face; he'd just had a lovely dream but as he came to full consciousness, he realized that it wasn't just a dream. Issy's lips really were wrapped around Mt. Gregory. Damn, it felt good. His breathing grew more shallow and rapid as he watched her mouth pulse up and down on his cock.

He moaned her name and she gave him a saucy look. The little minx was really into it. He threw his head back against the pillow and hissed with pleasure when she did that little tongue trick of hers. Damn, he wasn't going to be able to hold out long enough to give her some mutual pleasure. He'd have to return the favor afterwards.

"Issy. Oh, fuck. Issy. Oh, that's so good, baby."

She deep-throated him so fast and hard that he was sure that he was bruising her tonsils, but she didn't stop. When she caressed that sensitive spot behind his balls, he fell over the edge and blew his wad down her throat.

When he came down from his orgasmic high, Issy was gently licking his cock, a contented look on her face like a cat licking her chops after a saucer of milk.

He touched her cheek. "You sexy thing. Get your sweet ass up here."

She gave his cock one last kiss on the tip and then crawled up the bed to lie down next to him. He wrapped her up in an embrace and planted a deep kiss on her lips. "Hmmmm. That was a nice way to wake up."

Issy giggled and said in a saucy tone: "Glad you liked it."

"You didn't have to do that, you know."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I know that. I wanted to do that."

He looked into her eyes and saw that she meant it; that was good, he didn't want her feeling like she was obligated to give him orgasms, especially when she wasn't feeling well.

He slipped his hand inside of her lounge pants: " You know, I could use a little snack myself."

His fingers parted her folds: "Mmmm, somebody's wet."

They kissed passionately while his fingers worked their magic on her most sensitive spot. Issy sighed and arched into his touch.

Her clothing hampered House's movements, so he started to tug her pants off, but Issy stopped him. "No, don't. I look so awful. You don't want to see all that."

He gently rubbed her engorged button. "Shhh. Don't worry about that. I wanna make you feel good too. Come on, baby, come on. You know how much I like to snack on you. Your doctor's hungry. Let me have my snack. Hmmm, OK?"

His gentle persuasion worked. He was able to slide her pants off without any resistance this time. He gently parted her thighs, taking great care with the bruises and settled himself between her legs. The first touch of his tongue to her clit elicited a scream of pleasure. He chuckled and his warm breath gave her even more pleasant sensations. She moaned and fisted the sheets as he licked her clit and slid two fingers inside of her.

He took his time, savoring her sweet musty flavor, his tongue and fingers driving her to the edge over and over again. He would pull back at the last moment and chuckle when she groaned with frustration and thrust her core even closer to him. Finally he decided that he had tortured her long enough. His fingers curled in just the right way; his mouth suckled her clit hard and with a scream, Issy fell over the edge.

He kept up the intensity until she begged him to stop and then he backed off, just giving her clit the occasional lick to send a few aftershocks of pleasure to her brain. Finally he planted a gentle kiss on her inner thigh and then moved up the bed to pull her into his arms.

She let out a deep contented sigh: "That was amazing."

"Told ya I had a few tricks of my own."

She kissed him gently. "You sure do."

Finally they mustered the energy to get out of bed. They showered together and House washed Issy's hair for her. He really liked the dreamy look that she got on her face when he did that. House tended to her stitches, making sure that they were properly dried; then he applied the antibiotic ointment and bandage.

"You'll need to do this tomorrow morning after your shower, unless you want to wake me up to do it."

She shot him a mischievous look: "As much as I enjoy it when you 'doctor' me, I think I can handle applying some ointment and a bandage."

He felt a silly grin creep over his face and for once he decided to let it stay. "I like to 'doctor' you. You're so appreciative of my ministrations."

"I am _very_ appreciative. Shall I show you how much?"

"You already did when you woke me up so nicely. We better let the boy rest for a bit, but you could show me later on tonight."

She gave him a sultry look. "I think that could be arranged."

They spent the rest of the day in a similar fashion to yesterday. Games and TV occupied the rest of the afternoon. Mehek, the Indian restaurant, delivered dinner. After they had devoured the food, House took a seat on the piano bench and played some classical music for a while. Every time he looked up, he felt reassured by Issy's presence in her usual spot on the sofa.

Around 9:30, Issy rose and came over to the piano. She hugged him from behind and he turned his head to look at her. The look in her eyes was loving and gentle; he abruptly stopped playing and turned to face her.

"Does my patient need a little more doctoring?"

Issy put such a pretty little pout on her face that it caused his cock to twitch. With a finger light touch, she caressed his face: "Yes, Doctor. I would be greatly appreciative if you could help me with my little problem."

He stood up and grabbed her hand. "My exam room is right down this hallway. Let's go down there and you can show me exactly where the problem is."

Hand in hand, they walked to the bedroom. Issy's 'problem' was very easy for Dr. House to diagnose and the 'treatment' was pleasurable for both of them. Thoroughly sated, they both fell into a deep sleep.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

The next three days could not go fast enough for Issy. With each passing day, her soreness lessened, although the bruises were taking their sweet time in fading. Luck was with her this week, however, and she didn't have to do any heavy lifting at work, so she didn't have to worry about disturbing the stitches. Mostly, she was looking forward to the long four-day weekend. She hadn't had that much time off, since, well, since she had been homeless. She had a little bit of homework to do, but other than that, she was looking forward to just hanging out with Greg and doing a bunch of nothing for the next four days. Issy had to laugh at herself; if she was this excited about having four days off, how ecstatic was she going to be with a _three-week_ vacation at Christmastime?

Sunday had been so relaxing that it escaped her mind about calling Marcy. Arnello had said that Mancini had really messed her up. Did she really want to know how bad Marcy was? Would Marcy even tell her or would she be too scared to talk about it? Arnello had suggested that they keep a low profile; maybe Issy should put off calling Marcy for a while until the dust settled with her own issues. So Issy decided to put it on the back burner until at least Christmas and then think about calling her.

On Monday evening, she took the turkey out of the freezer to start defrosting. Issy had seen a program on the Food Network about brining a turkey. It was to suppose to make a really juicy turkey, so she decided to follow that recipe this year. When House came home from work, he found her in the kitchen throwing various ingredients into a stockpot.

A smile crossed his face: "Beginning the preparations for Thursday?"

Issy nodded: "I hope you're going to like it."

He kissed her cheek: "You're a good cook. I'm sure I'll love it."

After snatching a bit of the candied ginger, he headed to the couch and fired up his remote control. As she continued with the food preparations, Issy smiled inwardly at his compliment.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

By Wednesday evening, the turkey was completely defrosted. Issy put the bird in a roasting pan and poured the brine over it. House watched with fascination.

Issy explained: "I saw this on the Food Network; it's calling brining. It's supposed to make a really juicy turkey."

House laughed: "Well, if it works, you need to send the recipe to my Aunt Sara. She makes the driest turkey ever."

Issy was surprised at House's mention of a family member. Hesitantly she asked: "Did you spend a lot of Thanksgivings with your Aunt?"

"If we were stationed anywhere in the lower 48, Mom tried to get us there for either Thanksgiving or Christmas. I spent a few holidays with her. Her turkey is legendary and I don't mean that in a good way. To this day, Mom still complains about the turkey, just not to Aunt Sara."

"Are you parents going there tomorrow?"

He stuck his head in the refrigerator, looking for a snack. "Yeah, since Dad retired, they spend every holiday with her and Uncle Dave."

Issy nodded. After that disastrous meeting, she had not wanted to suggest inviting them for Thanksgiving and thankfully it seemed that Greg was used to spending the holidays without them.

Suddenly his head popped out and he said in an alarmed tone: "You weren't thinking of inviting them, were you?"

Issy cried out: "Oh, no! I'd never do that without checking with you first. And after that other dinner."

She let her words hang. House nodded his head and replied sarcastically: "_Right._ That was so much fun that we want to do it again. Believe me, it's much better this way. Even with Wilson, that might be one person too many."

Issy waved her hand at him. "Oh, it will be fine with Wilson."

In a concerned tone, he asked: "You sure you're going to be OK making this big dinner?"

"I'll be fine. The only thing that concerns me is taking the bird in and out of the oven, but I figure that I'll make puppy-dog eyes at the men and they will help me out with that one teeny little task."

He teased: "Yeah, that will work on Wilson. I'm immune to puppies, kittens and rainbows.

She hugged him around the waist: "Yeah, I heard that there was a vaccination for that now. Are you sure that you are up-to-date on your boosters?"

He tickled her ribs and was instantly apologetic when she winced from the pressure. "Crap. I forgot. You OK?"

"I'm fine. They're still a little sore and the bruises are taking so long to fade."

"They're really deep bruises. It's going to take a while. Hey, umm, I guess you need to watch what you wear tomorrow. Can't have you bending over and giving Wilson a peek of the girls right now."

"Oh, I know. I've got a sweater that I'm going to wear tomorrow. It will hide everything.

He pulled her into his arms and said: "Except your lovely face."

He planted gentle kisses on her face and she responded in kind, surprised, but pleased by his compliment.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Thanksgiving was a smashing success. The turkey came out as juicy and delicious as promised by the experts. Issy made every dish that House had asked for plus a couple extra ones. The three of them ate with gusto. Wilson raved about her cooking. House didn't pay her any spoken compliments, unless you count the loud burps that erupted from his mouth, but considering that he had three helpings of everything, she knew he was pleased.

After dinner, they took a break to watch some football before starting on dessert. The Jets game was a huge disappointment as they lost to the Cowboys, 34 – 3. They didn't care too much about the winner of the Packers/Lions confrontation, but at least it wasn't such a one-sided game and therefore was much more interesting to watch.

When Issy went into the kitchen to prepare dessert, Wilson said to House: "I can't believe that you've lasted this long."

House was focused on the game and it took a minute to process what Wilson had said. "What? Are you talking about me and Issy? Why the hell not? I lived with Stacy for five years. You don't think I can do a measly six months. Well, of course you don't, otherwise we wouldn't have made this bet. I got news for you, buddy. Issy and I are going the distance. You better have your checkbook ready in four months."

Wilson smirked: "And then what?"

"And then what, _what_?"

"What happens when the six months is over? Are you planning to continue the relationship after that time frame?"

_Was Wilson on to them? Naw, he's just trying to push my buttons and see if he gets a reaction._

House pointed to the kitchen: "Do you see that hottie in the kitchen? Do you _think_ I would give that up just because the six months is finished and I've won the bet? I have what you _wish_ you had, a twenty-five year old babe who is smart, gorgeous, a great cook and _totally _hot for me."

Wilson rolled his eyes: "Yeah, right, hot for your fifty-year-old ass."

House huffed: "I'm not fifty yet and I _still _don't need the little blue pills. You're just jealous that I have a little hottie and you don't."

"I am not jealous of your relationship with Issy, House."

"Yes, you are. Admit it."

"I'm not jealous."

"Admit it. Admit it. Admit it."

Wilson growled: "What are you, _five_?"

Issy strolled back into the room with a dish of pie in each hand. "Oh, dear. I leave the room for a few minutes and you boys start fighting. Don't worry, there's enough pie for everyone."

House accepted his plate from her outstretched hand. Issy had cut him a big slice of apple pie, warmed it and put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, which was now melting nicely. He had it made with Issy and he didn't mind rubbing it in Wilson's face every now and then.

As Issy handed Wilson a plate containing a slice of pumpkin pie covered in whipped topping, House remarked: "Wilson is jealous of us, but he won't admit it. He wants a young hottie girlfriend too."

Issy opened her mouth and then shut it again, not quite sure what to say. She saw the twinkle in Greg's eyes and she knew that he was enjoying this. He had Wilson right where he wanted him. Well, she could play along.

"Don't worry, Wilson. The right girl will come along. You want me to introduce you to a couple of nice girls in my class?"

Wilson closed his eyes and let out a deep exhale of frustration, but he managed a polite response. "That's OK, Issy. I can find my own dates. As usual, your _boyfriend_ is blowing my comment up bigger than life."

In an innocent tone, Issy said: "Oh, OK. Well, if you do want an introduction, just let me know. I'm going to get my pie now."

When Issy was out of earshot, Wilson hissed: "Thanks a lot, asshole."

With a mouthful of pie, House mumbled: "Hey, what are you complaining about? My girlfriend was willing to set you up. You should be happy. There are a lot of hot babes in her class."

He muttered: "Whatever."

Issy returned from the kitchen, stepped over House's outstretched legs and settled herself on the couch between the two men. House glanced at her plate and exclaimed: "Hey, you got _two_ pieces of pie."

Issy shook her head at his childishness. "I couldn't decide between apple and pumpkin so I took a little sliver of each. There's plenty more for you to have another slice."

He looked at her, decided that she was sincere and said: "OK."

House finished his slice of pie and stared at Issy's plate. She was eating so slowly, savoring each bite. The pie was so close to him that he couldn't resist. He stuck his fork in the piece closest to him and swiped a bite. It was in his mouth before he realized that he had swiped the pumpkin pie and not the apple, but on the other hand.

"Hey the pumpkin's not so bad with the whipped cream on top."

Issy gave him a knowing look. "You want me to get you a piece of that?"

His answer was to merely bat his blue eyes at her. She laughed and thrust her plate at him. "Here. Finish mine and I'll go get some more for both of us."

She grabbed his empty plate and headed back to the kitchen. Wilson called after her: "You spoil him."

Issy smiled and said: "I know, but he's worth it."

House shot Wilson a triumphant grin and then stuck his tongue out at him. Wilson just rolled his eyes and resumed eating his pie.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++++

House's Mom called later that evening. Wilson had already gone home and the two of them were cuddled up on the couch under a throw blanket, watching TV. House noted the caller ID, stuck his tongue out at the phone and answered in a faux cheerful voice: "Happy Thanksgiving, Mom."

"You too, dear. Did you have a nice day?"

"Except for the Jets losing, yeah, it was a great day. Wilson came over and Issy cooked a delicious meal for us. The turkey was really tender and juicy."

"Really? How did she do that? She needs to give lessons to your Aunt Sara."

"Issy'll have to tell you Mom. You know I'm hopeless in the kitchen."

"You're not hopeless, dear. You're smart enough to follow a recipe; you just don't make the effort. How nice that Issy cooked for the three of you."

House whined: "She made me eat _orange_ food. There was sweet potato casserole and pumpkin pie. I wasn't allowed to leave the table until I had three helpings of everything."

Issy giggled at his comments.

His mother laughed: "Oh, you poor boy. She's so mean to you, _forcing_ you to overeat on Thanksgiving. What will she do to you next?"

"She threatened me with leftovers. And she mentioned something about turkey casserole."

House gave a faux shudder and Issy laughed harder.

"Well, dear, I'm very happy that she cooked a big meal for you. It seems like she is taking good care of you."

He bussed the top of Issy's head. "Yeah, Mom, she takes good care of me."

"Your father's right here. You want to say Happy Thanksgiving to him?"

House swiftly hit a button on his cell phone and _MMMBop_ by Hanson started playing. "Oh, Mom, that's my team calling. I gotta go. Dying patient. Just tell Dad I said Happy Thanksgiving and I'll talk to you soon. Bye."

He quickly hung up.

Issy looked at him. "You don't have a patient."

He shrugged: "Mom doesn't know that and I got out of talking to my Dad. It's a win-win."

Issy chuckled: "Very clever of you."

He pulled her back into her previous position and they settled in for some more TV viewing.

The rest of the weekend was peaceful and quiet. House ate the leftovers without complaining. Issy made turkey casserole on Saturday. It consisted of a mixture of sautéed sausage and onions, wild rice and turkey, covered with cream of mushroom soup. Despite the fact that House thought it resembled gray barf, it was actually very tasty.

It was a bad football weekend for the guys. After suffering through the Jets' loss on Thanksgiving day, Sunday brought two more losses with the Giants losing to the Vikings and the Eagles losing to New England. The best game of the weekend turned out to be the Bears/Broncos match-up. Issy's team won 37 – 34 in overtime.

While the guys were watching the Eagles game, Issy excused herself to the bedroom to work on her paper. She actually finished her work in an hour, but then she continued to sit on the bed and think about the holiday. This was definitely the best Thanksgiving she'd had in a very long time, and she had really enjoyed herself. She had not been kidding Greg when she told him that she'd been cooking the holiday meal since she was nine years old. Once her daddy had left, it was up to Issy to do all the cooking and Frank had insisted on a big turkey dinner with all the trimmings. The day was not fun; it was a lot of work for a little kid. She had to get up early and do all the cooking and clean up. If the food wasn't just right, Frank would get extremely angry with her. She would wait until he tasted the food and proclaimed it to his standards before her nerves would settle down enough to allow her to eat.

The last few years she had spent the holiday helping out at the Trenton soup kitchen. They always needed extra hands, and after serving, Issy got to sit down and eat too. She didn't mind eating with the homeless folk; after all, she had been one of them once. After she had run away, she had spent her holidays eating at the Salvation Army soup kitchens. The food was decent and if there were extras, they would let you have a Styrofoam box to take away with you. She had been grateful for those meals and was glad to be able to help out in a small way now that she was no longer homeless. This year, since she wasn't going to be around to help serve, she sent them a twenty-dollar donation to help with the cost of the food.

The pie was gone, so Issy decided to bake some cookies for tonight's dessert. She closed her laptop and headed to the kitchen to get started. The cookie aroma got the guys drooling and they could barely wait for the cookies to cool before they started eating them. Between the three of them, they finished all the leftovers including the casserole. There was nothing left of the bird except for the bones. Issy stuck the carcass in the freezer, intending to use it to make soup next weekend.

As Issy and House got ready for bed, House said: "Tomorrow you can get your stitches out. Do you want Taub to do it or you want me to do it?"

She shrugged: "There's no need to involve him again, right? You can do it."

He nodded: "OK. I just wanted to make sure. I'll take them out when I come home tomorrow night."

House turned off the light and they snuggled together in bed.

"Greg?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"I wanted to thank Dr. Taub for helping me out, but I didn't know how to do it. So I was wondering. Do you think he would like some cookies? I could put some in a tin and write him a note."

He kissed her: "I'm sure that would be fine."

"You think he likes chocolate chip?"

"Everybody likes chocolate chip, baby."

She snuggled closer: "OK. That's what I'll do. Should I bring it to your office myself or would it be better if you just gave it to him?"

Wanting to keep his personal life away from his work life as much as possible, House replied: "I think it'll be better if I take it in."

"OK. I'll leave the tin on the counter for you to take in tomorrow."

The next morning, House found a gold-colored tin on the counter next to the coffee pot. A small white envelope was taped to the lid. He stuck it in his backpack and headed off to work.

They had no patient so House sent the team to the ER to dig one up. As they were walking out of the door, House said: "Dr. Taub, a minute of your time, first."

The rest of the team glanced at Taub, who shrugged and headed into House's office. After the others had left, House pulled the tin out of his backpack.

"Issy's doing well. I'll take her stitches out tonight. She wanted me to give you this."

Taub looked almost stunned. "Oh! Well. I'm glad to hear that she's doing OK. I wanted to ask you, but you know, not in front of the others."

House gave him a grave nod: "And I appreciate that."

Taub opened the tin: "Oh, chocolate chip. My favorite. These look home-made."

"They are and very good too. I suggest you hide them in your locker and take them home with you or you won't be eating very many of them. Your fellow vultures will steal them."

The short doctor closed the lid and peeled the envelope off of the tin. He read the short note and then stuffed it back into the envelope.

House tilted his head to ask the question in a nonverbal way.

Indicating the envelope, Taub said: "It just said, thank you very much for helping me out. I hope you like the cookies, just a small token of my appreciation."

Then it was his turn to tilt his head back at House: "So. Are you two, involved or what?"

House gave him a hard stare.

Taub got the hint. "Yeah, right. Not my business. Tell Issy thank you for the cookies and I was happy to help."

He hid the cookie tin in his briefcase and then headed out to the ER to help the other fellows with finding another patient.

On his way home, House stopped at CVS and bought Issy a tube of Mederma cream. After dinner, he gathered all the necessary equipment and had Issy lay down on the bed. First he cleaned the area with some antiseptic and then he carefully started removing the sutures.

He smiled when he was finished. "It looks good. He did a nice job. Go look in the mirror."

Issy's bruises still had not completely faded yet. They were now a sickly greenish-yellow color, but with the black stitches gone, her breasts looked considerably better.

Issy had a small smile on her face when she came back from the bathroom. "Wow, it's better than I thought it would be."

He tossed her the tube of Mederma: "And this will help. Use it three times a day for three months, like Taub said. It works well on fresh scars. You should still wear a bra as much as possible, to keep the scar from stretching, but you can go back to sleeping nekked again."

He waggled his eyebrows at her. She giggled and wrapped her arms around him. "Hooray! I missed sleeping naked with you."

He tenderly caressed her cheek. "You and me both, babe."

**A/N: I'm having computer problems again. I'll try to continue to post regularly but if you don't see me, that's why. I'll be back as soon as I can. Thank you so much for reading. glennie**


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

It was late afternoon, about a week later when Wilson dragged his butt into House's office.

He dropped into the chair in front of the desk. "Gimme a scotch."

House frowned: "This isn't a bar."

Wilson wiggled his fingers at him in a 'gimme' gesture. "Yeah, yeah. You've got a bottle in the bottom right hand drawer, give it up."

House fished the bottle out of the drawer and found Wilson a semi-clean coffee mug. He poured him a shot and asked: "So, who died today?"

Wilson took a gulp and shuddered. "A six-year-old. Already been through three rounds of chemo and did fine. Today he crashed. And Issy was there."

Now House's interest was piqued. "What?"

"He went into anaphylaxis. Issy was the first one in the room when the monitor went off. She didn't panic, did all the right things. Stopped the drip, punched the button to call the code and started CPR. I pushed Epi, Decadron and Benadryl but it didn't help. Nice little kid too. Had been responding well to the chemo, had a decent chance of surviving the cancer."

"But not the allergic reaction to the chemo. Sucks, Wilson."

House poured him another shot and then had one himself. In a casual tone that didn't fool Wilson a bit, he asked: "So, how did Issy take it?"

"You'd have been proud of her. She handled herself really well. She was calm and professional throughout the whole code and afterwards she comforted the other student who broke down after I called time of death. Her instructor came to the floor afterwards and took the two of them off for the rest of the day."

Feeling a prickle of alarm, he asked: "Issy went home early?"

"I don't know. They left the floor around 3:00, but I don't know if the instructor sent them home or not."

He nodded.

Wilson gave him a knowing look. "Why don't you take off? It's almost 5:00, anyway."

"Yeah, think I will."

House picked up the bottle of scotch: "Need another hit?"

"Naw, I'm good for now. Just needed to unwind a bit. I've got a bunch of paperwork to do before I head home. I'll see you tomorrow."

Wilson drained his mug and then walked into the conference and set it in the sink before heading back to his office.

House drained the dregs of his own mug, grabbed his backpack and headed out.

The apartment was quiet when he entered, but he knew she was home as her car was parked in its usual spot. She could be out on her run, but he didn't think so. This afternoon's event would have probably caused significant anxiety and he thought he knew what she would be doing to relieve that feeling. He found her in the first place he looked, in the corner behind the piano. Issy was hugging the dog and drawing in her sketchbook.

He sank down on the piano bench. "Hey."

She looked up at him and bit her lip. He was pleased to see that she didn't look completely terrified at being caught indulging in her hobby. This time, she just looked mildly apprehensive.

Her voice trembled: "H-hey."

"I heard you had kind of a rough day."

She clutched the dog closer and nodded.

He patted the piano bench. "It's hard for me to get on the floor. Wanna come sit next to me?"

She stared at him, wide-eyed, for a moment and then said softly: "OK."

After setting the sketchbook aside, she climbed onto the bench, with the dog still clutched in her left arm.

He put his arm around her. "The first time that a patient dies on you is really hard. You wonder what you could have done differently that might have changed the outcome. It can make you doubt your career choice. I can tell you from experience, that your hide gets tougher each time it happens, but it's never a walk in the park. And when it's a kid."

House let out a deep sigh: "Shit, that never gets easier. Wilson's seen who knows how many kids die in his practice and still today, he came by my office for a shot of scotch."

Her arm snaked around his waist and her head ended up on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head and said: "It's OK to cry about it. Do you need to cry?"

"I did that earlier, before you came home."

"Do you want a shot of scotch?"

She looked at him sheepishly: "I did that earlier too. Just one. But it didn't make me feel much better, so I, umm, got my backpack out."

"Did that help?"

She nodded.

He tangled his hand in her hair and pulled her closer. Their lips met and he gave her a tender kiss. "Good. Now I gotta tell you something important."

Issy looked up at him expectantly.

"If you wanna draw, that's fine. I'm not going to get pissed off about it and rip up your drawings. It doesn't bother me that you draw. But what does bother me is you hiding in a corner and sitting on the floor to do it."

Issy opened her mouth but House barreled on: "I understand why you do that, but you don't have to do that in our home. You wanna draw? Fine, but sit on the couch or in the chair to do it. You're not a dog and I don't want you sitting on the floor, OK?"

She stared intently at him. Tears pooled in her eyes but did not spill over. She opened her mouth as if to reply, but then closed it and simply nodded her response.

He caressed her cheek. "You can sit on the couch and draw while I play the piano. It's our home and there are no cruel father figures here to tell us we can't indulge in our little hobbies. We're all grown-up now and we can do what we want."

Issy took a moment to process his words and then asked: "Your father didn't like you playing the piano?"

"Nope. It wasn't manly enough for him. He didn't stop my mother from giving me lessons, but if she weren't around, he'd express his displeasure about my playing. It was definitely better for me to play when he wasn't home."

"That had to suck."

"Yeah, well. It sucked for you, too."

Issy didn't know what to say. It was so decent of Greg to acknowledge her crappy childhood and to tell her that it was fine to draw whenever she wanted. He had said it was _our_ home and we could do whatever we wanted in _our_ home. That made her feel like she really belonged here, even though she knew it was just a temporary arrangement. Issy was really beginning to wish that there wasn't a time limit on their relationship. She had become very fond of Greg. That gruff exterior hid a complex man. He was brilliant, sexy, talented, funny, child-like and loving all wrapped up in one package. Very few people got to see the inner workings of Greg House and she considered herself lucky to be one of the select few. There were feelings that she was experiencing with Greg that she had never had before and she wondered if she was falling in love.

Issy admonished herself for even thinking such thoughts. It was stupid; Greg would never think of her that way. He did seem fond of her and he was very protective after that whole thing with Mancini, but love? No. That wasn't possible. He might be good to her, but he could never fall in love with a whore like her. She needed to keep those little thoughts to herself. He'd laugh in her face if she ever said something like that out loud.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips. "I've got a big steak that I was planning to broil tonight and I could make some mashed potatoes to go with it. How does that sound?"

He smiled: "That sounds great."

They shared a few more tender kisses before she hopped off the bench and headed to the kitchen to start dinner. As Issy bustled around the kitchen with dinner preparations, she pondered if she was really in love with Greg or if she was just happy because he was so good to her. She wondered how a person could tell the difference.

Greg reseated himself on the bench so that he was now facing the piano. Issy's dog had been abandoned on the seat next to him as she had hurried into the kitchen to start dinner. He chuckled amusedly at the dirty ragged toy, and then set it on top of the piano for Issy to retrieve later. He didn't want to just toss it on the floor, knowing how attached she was to it. Somehow it seemed disrespectful to do that. House closed his eyes and rested his fingers on the keys for a moment, waiting for inspiration to strike and tell him what to play. Brahms's concerto popped into his head and his fingers responded by hitting all the appropriate keys. As he tickled the ivories, he could feel the stress of the day melt away and a wave of relaxation overtake him.

Issy smiled when he started playing. She was glad that he felt comfortable enough to play in front of her and she loved listening to him. There was a sense of contentment in preparing their dinner while he played. Life was good here, but she was being girlish and silly thinking that she was in love with him. Surely she was just reacting to his kindness and it wasn't really _love_. She was just thrilled to be living with such a nice man in a lovely apartment after years of hardship and thereby, confusing it with that four-letter emotion.

After putting the potatoes on to boil, Issy wandered over to the couch to listen to him play for a while. She was almost to her seat when she saw it. Greg had placed Pookie on top of the piano. Why had he done that? If the dog had been in his way, why hadn't he merely tossed the smelly thing on the floor?

As she stood there wondering about the ramifications of his actions, House opened his eyes. He gave her a warm smile, the kind that went all the way to his eyes. Issy thought that she would turn into a puddle of goo right on the spot. He pursed his lips, blew her a little kiss and then closed his eyes again as he continued to play the concerto.

A light bulb popped on in her head. He hadn't tossed Pookie on the floor because he was letting her know that it was OK with him that she had the dog, just like it was OK with him that she drew. He didn't mind that she kept a smelly stuffed animal merely because her daddy had given it to her. He accepted it because it was what she needed.

It hit her like a bolt of lightning and she thought her chest was going to explode. She was in love with him. There was no doubt in her mind now. And, boy, was she in trouble.


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

During a commercial break of WWE Friday Night Smackdown, Issy asked: "You know, Christmas is in less than three weeks. What do you usually do for the holiday?"

House snorted: "Eat Chinese food with my good Jewish friend Wilson. Hit a movie. Get drunk. The usual."

"OK. Let me rephrase the question. What should your _girlfriend_ be doing for the holiday? Shall we put up a tree? Do you want me to make a big Christmas dinner?"

House leaned his head back against the couch and chuckled. "A tree. Crap, I haven't had a tree since Stacy left. She used to decorate, hang stockings and all that pagan crap. And then she _had_ to go to church on Christmas Eve and it was always a fight because she wanted me to go and I wouldn't."

He stared intently at Issy: "Do you go to church on Christmas?"

Issy shook her head: "Hell no. I'm a total Pagan. A jolly fat man that flies around the world in a sleigh drawn by eight flying reindeer and hands out free gifts is more believable to me than the whole birth in the manger thing."

House breathed a sigh of relief. "OK. Good. We agree on that point. What do you usually do on Christmas?"

Issy shrugged: "Nothing much. Thanksgiving and Christmas were the only days that the clubs were closed. I was basically happy to just have the day off. What I did for the last couple of years is go to the Trenton soup kitchen and help serve dinner."

House asked incredulously: "You'd spend your day off feeding a bunch of homeless people?"

She answered in a defensive tone: "Yes. They're people too and they should have a holiday meal."

He gave her a brisk nod: "You're right."

He was silent for a few minutes and Issy could practically see the wheels turning in his head. Finally he spoke: "Yeah, we did Thanksgiving; we should do Christmas. Wilson would expect that. In fact, I'm surprised that he hasn't already asked me what I'm getting you for a present. The man is slipping. I guess we should get a tree, huh?"

The little kid inside of her leapt for joy at the thought of a real live Christmas tree, but grown-up Issy merely shrugged and said: "If you want. Since you used to have one with Stacy, Wilson would probably expect you to have one with me, right?"

"Good point. We'll get a tree and some decorations. Can you handle that? I'm really not much into the whole fa-la-la-la-la thing. I'll give you some money and you can get the stuff. Get some."

He paused and Issy waited him out.

Finally he said: "Get the little white twinkly lights for the tree. The all white kind, not the multi-colored ones. The all white is nicer."

Issy grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. She jotted down his request and then asked: "Anything else?"

"A live tree, not a fake one. And do _not_ get an angel or a star for the top of the tree. Find some other kind of decoration. I can deal with Santa but not with all the religious crapola. Stockings on the mantel would be OK. And when you get the tree, get a live wreath for the door too. Hey, can you make a ham for Christmas dinner?"

For a guy who just stated that he wasn't into the whole Christmas scene, he sure had a lot of requests. Issy smiled inwardly and said: "Of course, I can make a ham. Are we inviting Wilson over for Christmas dinner? I mean, he's Jewish, does he eat ham?"

House smirked: "The man has eaten pork fried rice with me every Christmas for the last seven years. He'll eat ham. He ain't a kosher Jew, just a cultural one. What about you, babe?"

Issy was surprised by the sudden change in topic: "What about me, what?"

"What do you like for Christmas? Is there anything special that you want?"

She shook her head. "Whatever you want is fine with me. I haven't really done Christmas a whole lot lately."

He gently touched her face: "What about before? You know, _way_ before. Like when that picture was taken."

Issy suddenly felt like crying. Why had he brought _that_ up? "I was four when that picture was taken. I don't really remember a whole lot."

"Did he give you the dog that Christmas?"

She ducked her head, not wanting to meet his intense gaze. "No, he gave me the dog on my fourth birthday."

House realized that he was touching a sore nerve. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his cheek on the top of her head. "What do you remember about Christmas with your Dad?"

Issy pressed her cheek against his chest; his heartbeat was a comforting sound. "He used to put candy in my stocking. Candy canes and Hershey Kisses. Red and green lollipops. One year, he gave me a little record player and some records. I think I was five."

She started to giggle: "One year, someone gave him this really hideous tie. It was so ugly and I mean, Daddy worked in a factory. He never wore ties, so it was a really stupid present. We used it on the snowman instead of a scarf. We always made a snowman on Christmas Day."

Her voice trailed off and she found herself missing her Daddy more than she had in a long time. _Damn holiday season. Why wasn't it January yet?_

House squeezed her tighter: "I guess in Ohio you are pretty much guaranteed snow on Christmas, huh?"

She nodded, but didn't say any more.

"Wilson always gives me ugly ties for Christmas. Like I wear them? You'd think he'd know by now."

Issy touched his chest. "You're not a tie guy. Vintage tee shirts would be a better choice for you."

He teased: "Is that what you're going to get me?"

She gave him a surprised look.

"Well, if we're doing Christmas, we'll have to give each other presents. Any thoughts on that?"

Her eyes widened at the thought. Presents? She had no idea what to get him, and what on earth would he get her? Her mind reeled. She shook her head: "Not at the moment."

"I guess we can just surprise each other. When are you going to get the tree and stuff?"

"This weekend, I guess. Why?"

"I just wanted to be sure Wilson was here to help you bring the tree in. He'll be here on Sunday to watch football. You should definitely bring the tree home then."

"Sunday, it is then."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After making breakfast on Sunday, House gave Issy some cash and she headed out to Target. The vast selection of Christmas-related items stunned her; there was so much to choose from. She started with the basics. First she found a tree stand and a green tree skirt decorated with snowmen to cover the base of the tree. White twinkly lights were next and she tossed four boxes into the cart. The silver garland looked nice so four boxes of that went into the cart also.

Suddenly she had an idea. The tree would have a winter wonderland theme. All of the decorations would be white or silver in color. She found some silver bells and snowflake decorations. Perfect. A box of icicles would complete the look that she wanted.

Now, she needed a tree topper that wasn't religious. There wasn't that big of a selection and most of them were stars or angels. Finally she found a snowman topper that would fit in with her theme. He went into the cart. In the next bin were some sprigs of mistletoe. It was kinda corny, but it seemed like something that a couple in love would hang up. Wilson would get a chuckle out of it. She tossed two sprigs into the cart.

What else did she need? Oh, yeah, stockings for the mantel. She pushed the cart into the next aisle and found a package of stocking holders that she thought were adorable. There were four holders: a snowman, a tree, a snowflake and Santa. She hoped that Greg wouldn't think they were too cutesy because she really wanted them. Suddenly, she was starting to get excited about decorating. She tried to picture the mantel in her mind. It seemed like it would be a bit bare with just two stockings hanging there. An idea occurred to her and she hurried back to the other aisle. A length of fir garland and a snowy white mantel cloth were just the ticket. If Greg thought the holders were too cutesy, she could disguise them with the other items.

She headed back to the other aisle for the stockings. She started to pick up the traditional red ones when another display caught her eye. Her mouth fell open as she picked up a particular stocking. It was a Monster Jam 'Maximum Destruction' monster truck stocking. She had to get that; Greg would love it.

Now, what to get for herself? She looked up and down the aisle, finally deciding on a musical Snoopy stocking. It played that joyous Peanuts theme from 'A Charlie Brown Christmas', the one that always made her feel like dancing. Greg might not like it, but she could play it when he wasn't around. The stocking depicted Snoopy laying down on his doghouse, which had been decorated with Christmas lights. A stocking with a dog on it seemed perfect for her.

Issy looked over the contents in her basket; it seemed like she had everything that she needed from Target. As she started towards the checkout, she passed the end cap that held Hanukkah decorations. She paused for a minute to look at them. She didn't really know much about the holiday, except that they lit one candle for each night of the holiday and used a special eight-branched candleholder. What were they called? Oh, yeah, menorahs. As she examined the items on the end cap, she noticed some stockings. There was a blue one with little menorahs all over it. Issy grinned; she'd get that for Wilson. Then they would have three stockings on the mantel. She'd find a little present to stuff in there for him to open. If he was having Christmas dinner with them, he may as well have a present to open too. She tossed the Hanukkah stocking into her cart and headed to the registers.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

There was a Christmas tree lot about five blocks from their apartment. Issy headed there right after she packed the trunk with her Target purchases. She scrutinized the trees carefully, finally deciding on a six foot Fraser fir. While the guys tied it to the top of her car, she picked out a wreath and paid for her purchases. As she climbed back into her car, she checked her watch. It was just after 1:00 and Wilson should be there by now. Her timing was spot on.

She parked the car and then grabbed the wreath and a couple of the Target bags and headed inside. She burst into the apartment and announced cheerily: "Guess what? I got a tree."

The guys spun their heads around. House looked at her incredulously: "A tree? You got a Christmas tree? For us?"

Greg was playing the part of the reluctant boyfriend in this Christmas 'play' and Issy's role was the enthusiastic girlfriend that was full of Christmas cheer. Wilson was their audience of one.

She responded with great cheer: "Yes, Greg. It's Christmas. I got us a tree. It's out on my car right now. Come on, help me bring it in."

He scowled: "Yeah, right. Cripple here. You want the tree, you can bring it in."

"I can't get it off the roof by myself. I need another set of hands. Please?"

Wilson stood up. "I'll help you bring it in. We'll leave the Grinch here on the couch and hope that his heart will grow a size or two before Christmas."

"Oh, thanks, Wilson. That's so nice of you."

Wilson held his hand up in a 'stop' gesture. "Wait a minute before we bring it in. Where are you putting it?"

Issy pointed: "Right in front of the window."

"OK. You got the tree stand?"

She dove into one of the Target bags and pulled it out. Under Wilson's direction, she got a towel and placed it under the tree stand so that the legs would not mar the wood floor. Once the stand was set up, they went out to bring the tree in.

House smirked; the plan was working perfectly.

The two of them dragged the tree in and got it set up in the stand. House took a deep inhalation; he loved the smell of pine. Issy had shown good judgment with the tree; it was just the right size for their space.

Issy thanked Wilson for his help, assured him that she could handle the rest and ran back out to the car to bring in the rest of the bags. Wilson smirked at House as he sat back down.

"Seems like your girlfriend is really into Christmas."

House groaned: "Great. Just what I need. Oh, well. I'll probably get some presents out of the deal."

"Hey, it's not a one-way street. You need to get her a gift too."

House whined: "Oh, Dad, do I have too?"

"She's your girlfriend. I think if you don't, she'll be rather disappointed. I wouldn't count on any Christmas sex if she doesn't have a gift to unwrap."

"She can unwrap me anytime, no need to wait until Christmas."

Wilson groaned.

"Yeah, you'll probably right. Don't wanna miss out on the Yuletime sex. Issy really knows how to jingle my bells, if you get my meaning."

"I get it, I get it. You don't have to spell it out. Just go buy here a present. Something nice, not just lingerie for you to take off of her."

"Damn, no lingerie? I saw this hot red teddy in Victoria's Secret too. Issy would look smokin' in that."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "You're hopeless, House."

++++ HOUSE MD +++++ HOUSE MD +++++

Issy insisted that she didn't need any help, but as Wilson explained, it was much easier to hang the lights with one person on each side of the tree. House kept one eye on the football game and the other on the amusing scene across the room. He had to admit that his Jewish friend could efficiently decorate a Christmas tree.

After the lights and garland were up, Issy shooed Wilson away, saying that she could handle the rest herself.

"Go enjoy the game. I'm going to throw some snacks in the oven and then I'll finish the tree."

A certain word caused House's ears to perk up: "What kinda snacks?"

"Mini-pizzas, and pigs-in-a-blanket. They'll be ready in about twenty minutes"

Wilson actually looked disappointed at being banished from the tree.

House rolled his eyes: "You'd rather decorate a Druidic symbol of eternal life than watch the Jets battle the Browns? I'm gonna pull your Man Card."

Wilson mumbled: "Haven't had a Christmas tree since Julie left."

House exclaimed: "And you're Jewish! Why would you even want one?"

Wilson shrugged: "They're nice to look at."

Issy leaned over the back of the couch and addressed Wilson: "Does that mean you'll come to Christmas dinner? I'm baking a ham."

Just as Wilson said: "Yes, I'd love to come," House interjected with: "Christmas dinner? What the hell? We just had Thanksgiving."

Issy singsonged: "It's the most wonderful time of the year."

Then she giggled: "Don't worry. You won't have to do a thing except eat. I'll make it worth your while."

House said in an ominous tone: "You better."

Issy winked at him. "Don't I always?"

She turned and pranced back to the Christmas tree. There was a little extra English in the sway of her hips. She started humming the tune to 'Santa Baby' as she bent over to pull the decorations out of the Target bag. It seemed to take her quite a while to find what she was looking for, and she remained in that bent-over position for several minutes as she searched, enticingly swaying her hips to the song.

The guys watched, slack-jawed.

Finally she found what she was looking for and stood up with a box of ornaments in her hand. Issy gave House a saucy look over her shoulder and commenced decorating the tree.

House let out a deep sigh. "Fuck. Me."

Wilson chuckled: "Somehow I'd be willing to bet that she does _that _quite well."

**A/N: Warning! I'm off on vacation and I won't be able to post while I'm gone. It will be about 10 days before you get the next chapter, so hang it there. I'll be back! Thank you so much for reading.**


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: Thank you for your patience!**

Chapter 38

House got a new patient the week before Christmas. He wasn't thrilled by this turn of events; he had hoped to ease into the holiday season with a lighter than usual workload. Then again, perhaps having a case would make the last week go faster and have the additional bonus of getting him out of clinic duty. Issy had three weeks off at Christmas, so he decided to use some of his vacation time and enjoy his plaything while she could devote herself 24/7 to his desires. He had put in a request for two weeks off and Cuddy immediately granted it. That still left him with eighteen weeks of vacation in the bank, so he figured that he could spare two. His vision for those two weeks included lots of sex, breakfast in bed, bubble baths and any other kind of pampering that he could think of. Aside from the Christmas Day dinner, he had absolutely no plans and didn't want any either.

It took three days to solve the case. While his team was scurrying around, performing tests and checking out the patient's home, House was screwing with their minds by playing 'Secret Santa' and having only his name in the hat. They figured out his scheme within 24 hours and yet everyone except Foreman still got him a gift. He scored a new watch, a second edition Conan Doyle and a vintage LP.

House was having a hard time deciding what to get Issy. Since Wilson had put the nix on the lingerie, he had to figure out something else. It had been a long time since he had bought a present for a woman. Stacy had been good at dropping hints; Issy had not given him the slightest inkling of what she would like. He had to smile; she really had no idea how this whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing worked.

He quietly observed her as she puttered around the kitchen, in the hope that it would give him a gift idea. She liked to cook; would she appreciate a cookbook? She might, but it was too pedestrian. Issy would most likely be thrilled with just about anything that he gave her, but he also wanted it to be a gift that would impress Wilson.

What did she like to do? She drew on the sly, read tattered second-hand mysteries and listened to her favorite rock stars on her little boom box. No matter how many times he told her that she could play his stereo, she often reverted back to using her boom box, especially when she was cooking. She didn't have a lot of CD's; maybe that could be something. He knew her taste in music leaned towards what the music industry referred to as 'classic rock', although she had recently, with his guidance, developed a taste for the blues. Tomorrow, after work, he'd go shopping and figure something out.

House wondered what she was going to get him. Wilson had spilled the beans over lunch one day that she had asked him for ideas, but refused to reveal what he had told her. House cringed at the thought of Issy listening to Wilson's suggestions; he'd end up with _two_ ties this year if she did.

HOUSE MD ++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Cuddy strutted into his office on Friday morning. She had one hand behind her back and a smirk on her face.

"Ready for your vacation? Got big plans?"

"Well, I've already got the twins booked for Christmas Eve, but hey, there is always room for one more. Why don't you come over around 9PM? We'll par-tay all night long."

Cuddy rolled her eyes in disgust. "Pig. I suppose your plans revolve around scotch, Vicodin, hookers and Chinese food with Wilson on Christmas Day. Well, here's a little monkey wrench in your plans."

With a flourish, she tossed a large manila envelope onto his desk.

He frowned at it: "It's addressed to you, not to me."

"Yeah, it was addressed to _me_, to make sure that _you_ got it, since _you_ frequently just toss your mail straight into the trash. Go on; open it. I want to see the look on your face."

He didn't want to give her the satisfaction, but curiosity won out. He opened the large envelope; the only contents were a smaller white envelope with his name on it. Not knowing whether to expect a bonus check or anthrax, he carefully slit that one open.

It was neither, but it was better than he could have imagined. It was two tickets to see Buddy Guy play at the Apollo Theatre in New York City on the Friday after Christmas. He had looked into that show, but the tickets had been sold out for months. These were orchestra seats, fifth row on the aisle. Who had been able to score these excellent tickets and why had they sent them to him?

He unfolded the accompanying letter. It was short and to the point, just the way he liked them.

_Dear Dr. House,_

_ I never properly thanked you for saving my life. _

_ I remember that you have a fondness for the blues and hope that you will enjoy this show._

_Merry Christmas,_

_Senator Gary Wright_

House chuckled; what do you know? Senator Gary Wright. That case had been almost three years ago. Took the Senator a while to express his appreciation, but these tickets were worth the wait.

Cuddy interrupted his musings: "So, who are you taking to the concert? You and Wilson gonna paint the town red?"

House tisked: "Wilson? _No way_. His musical tastes lean towards Broadway _show tunes_."

He gave a faux shudder: "It's a shame that it's only _two_ tickets. One of the twins will be disappointed. How will I decide between them?"

He tapped a finger thoughtfully against his chin: "I suppose I could make it into a contest. The one who gives me the best."

She held up her hand. "Stop right there. I don't wanna know. You figure it out yourself. Merry Christmas, House."

Cuddy turned on her heel and stalked out of his office.

He chuckled at her disgusted reaction; the hooker jokes still worked on her. It was amazing that his relationship with Issy still had not made its way around the PPTH grapevine yet. For once, Wilson was keeping his big mouth shut.

He turned his attention back to the tickets. Issy was going to love this. Under his tutelage, she had begun to enjoy some of his favorite blues artists and Buddy Guy happened to be one of her new faves. The show started at 8PM; it would be a hassle to drive in and out of the city on a Friday night, so why not just spend the night? In fact, why not make a weekend of it? He had two weeks off; why not spend part of it in the city? He turned to his computer and started searching for hotel rooms.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++

On the drive home, House debated whether he should tell Issy about the concert now or surprise her with it on Christmas. By the time he pulled into his usual parking spot, he had decided to tell her tonight. He had shopped this week and had gone a bit nuts in the gift-buying department. Since she had a lot to unwrap on Christmas Day, he'd spring this on her tonight.

The apartment smelled of vanilla, sugar and butter. House took a deep breath and smiled; there would be fresh-baked cookies later. He glanced at the tree and noticed that there were two wrapped gifts under it now. Three stockings hung on the mantle and House chuckled every time that he looked at the Hanukkah stocking. Wilson was going to get a kick out of that.

For the first time in years, House found himself looking forward to the holiday. He didn't even mind Issy's cheesy Christmas CD that she was singing along to while she baked; Dean Martin was currently crooning _'Let_ _it Snow'_. All the songs on this particular CD were secular, so it wasn't so bad. House put his things away, limped quietly into the kitchen and found Issy sliding a pan of circular goodies into the oven. He waited until she closed the oven door before speaking.

"Smells good in here."

Issy let out a little squeak. "Oh, I didn't hear you come in. Let me turn this off."

She started for the boom box but House grabbed her and pulled her into his arms.

"S'alright. I can handle ol' Dino singing."

He nuzzled her cheek and sang softly in her ear: "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow."

Issy giggled: "Isn't it great? Vacation is finally here. What are you going to do with all this time off?"

He squeezed her ass with one hand, while the other tangled in her hair. "_We_ are getting naked and staying naked until we run out of food and have to go out again. Or maybe we'll just call for delivery and toss on robes long enough to pay the guy."

"We have enough food to last us until Christmas, but you know we'll have to get dressed then, cuz Wilson is coming over."

"Bah, humbug. We'll make him a plate and set it in the hall. He'll be fine."

Issy lightly caressed his cheek. "We can get dressed for just one day. I don't want him to eat in the hall all by himself."

House grumbled: "OK, OK. Fine. We'll get dressed for Christmas, but _only_ while Wilson's here."

Issy pouted: "Won't it be kinda chilly running around naked all week?"

House kissed her pouty lips. "I'll light a fire, plus I have other ways to keep you warm."

She gave him a sultry smile: "I know you do."

He brushed his lips against hers. Her mouth was soft and her lips parted for his tongue. The kiss was so warm and tender that House felt a stirring in his pants. He sighed into her mouth and pressed her against the length of his body. Her arms were tightly wrapped around him. She felt so good that he never wanted to let go. For a brief moment, he let himself believe that what they had was real. Then his cursed leg started to ache and he remembered why a hot young thing like her would not choose to be with a crippled old man like him without money changing hands.

He shook off those uncomfortable feelings and said: "I've got something to show you. C'mere."

House grabbed her hand and led her over to the couch. After they were seated, he said: "Close your eyes."

She quickly complied and he pulled the tickets out of his pocket.

Holding them up in front of her face, he said: "You can look now."

Her eyes popped open and she squinted at the small print on the two rectangular stubs that he held in front of her face. Suddenly her eyes grew wide and she squealed: "Buddy Guy? _Buddy Guy! Oomigod!_ I can't believe that you got tickets to see _him!"_

House grinned at her enthusiasm. "And you know the best part? They were _free._ A former patient sent them to me to thank me for saving his life."

"Wow! That is so cool."

Her face fell a little. "So I guess, hmm, you and Wilson are gonna go see the show."

House let out a snort. "Wilson? Why would I take him? His idea of great music is Broadway show tunes. I was planning on taking this hot chick who's into the blues, that is, if she'll go with me."

Issy squealed louder than before. "Yes! Of course, I want to go. You're really gonna take me?"

Chuckling with amusement at her reaction, House said: "Yes, of course, I'm going to take my _girlfriend_ to the concert."

"Oh, Greg. I've never been to a concert before. Oh, this is so cool. Thank you!"

She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. He chuckled and hugged her back. Issy planted a couple of enthusiastic kisses across his face. He pulled her onto his good leg and buried his face in the warmth of her neck. If going to her first concert got her this excited, wait until she saw where they would be staying. He decided to spring that surprise on her when they reached their destination.

"I got us a hotel too. Thought as long as we were going to the city, we may as well stay for a couple of days and have some fun. Anything special you want to do while we're there?"

Issy thought for a moment and then asked: "Can we go see the tree in Rockefeller Center?"

"Sure, why not? Anything else?"

She shrugged: "Anything you want to do is fine with me."

"Didn't you say that you wanted to go see the dry cleaner guy?"

Issy's mouth fell open. She couldn't believe that he remembered her saying that. "Well, yeah, but we don't have to on this trip. I can always go see him another time, you know, after I graduate from school."

"Well, we'll be there so we can go if you want. I thought we could go to FAO Schwartz and check out the new toys. And there're a couple of vintage record shops in the Village that I want to hit. You wanna go see the mummies at the Met?"

She gave him a shy smile. "Yeah, maybe."

"It will be fun. I want to take you to this French bistro that I like and we'll have dinner at Ben Benson's steak house one night."

"It all sounds so wonderful. I can't wait. When are we going to leave?"

"The concert's Friday night. We will head to the city on Thursday and stay until Sunday evening. Monday's New Year Eve and I'd prefer not to get into all the ball-dropping hoopla. Hope that's OK."

"Oh, that's fine with me. This sounds fantastic. I can't wait."

Just then the timer went off. Issy exclaimed: "Oh, that's the cookies. Let me get them out of the oven."

She planted three quick kisses on his face and then hurried to the kitchen. "Oh, hey, when did you want the 'naked weekend' to start?"

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "As soon as you get those cookies out of the oven, babe."


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

They didn't spend the entire weekend naked but they came close. Wilson came over on Sunday afternoon for football and thankfully he called first to see if they wanted anything, otherwise he would have found them naked on the rug in front of the fireplace. House requested some beer and that delayed Wilson's arrival enough for them to get dressed.

House woke on Christmas morning to see a bright-eyed, eager face staring back at him. Issy looked like she could barely contain her excitement.

She gave him a peck on the lips. "Merry Christmas, Greg."

"Well, jingle my bells, baby. Where're my gifts to unwrap?"

He poked his head under the covers. "Oh, there's one."

He planted a raspberry on her breast and Issy giggled.

"Oh, there's another one."

He gave her other breast the same treatment. Issy continued to giggle as House tickled and blew raspberries all over her naked body. The tickles became caresses; Issy's giggles turned into moans of pleasure as House licked and kissed her favorite spots. She was more than ready when he slid inside of her and it didn't take long for both of them to reach their pinnacle of pleasure.

House collapsed on top of her. "This is my favorite present of all."

Issy laughed: "But you haven't opened the other ones yet."

"Doesn't matter. I know that this one is the best."

Issy made a funny squeaking noise; House tried to lift his head to look at her, but she maintained a tight grip on him and it was several minutes before he was able to look into her eyes. Her expression was so loving that he could almost believe it to be true. Maybe it wasn't all about the money; maybe she did have some feelings for him.

At the same time, Issy was wondering the exact same thing. His words and the look in his eyes, maybe, just maybe she wasn't just a whore to him. It seemed liked he cared for her at least a little bit. That meant more to her than any present that he could buy, most of which she was sure that he had bought to impress Wilson.

She caressed his face: "I'm glad you liked your present. You can unwrap it again later if you want."

"Oh, I'm sure I'll want. But right now, how about that special breakfast that you promised me?"

"Coming right up. You want me to bring it to you in bed?"

"Naw, I'll come out there. Get the coffee going and get that ham in the oven, woman. You told Wilson we'd be eating at four."

Issy smiled as she scampered out of bed. "No worries, Greg. We will."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD

Greg had requested the Christmas breakfast of his childhood, biscuit sandwiches consisting of Tennessee sausage and slices of cheddar cheese. His mother's Southern roots kept that tradition going year after year, no matter where they were stationed. If the ingredients were not obtainable at their current locale, Aunt Sara would mail them to his mother. House had not enjoyed this particular breakfast in almost thirty years; he had never even asked Stacy to make it for him. He wasn't sure what had caused him to make this request from Issy, but one evening the suggestion popped out of his mouth and naturally she agreed to make it for him.

When she brought him a plate with two large biscuit sandwiches on it, he flashed back to his tenth Christmas. They had been stationed in California that year and Dad had been ordered to spend Christmas week on maneuvers. Mom had made sure that the two of them had a pleasant holiday while he was gone. They had put up a tree and after eating their breakfast biscuits, he had even helped Mom with cooking Christmas dinner. Mom had given him the new Rolling Stones album, _'Let it Bleed'_ for his gift that year. It had been just what he wanted. He had spent the rest of the week either playing the album or picking out _'You Can't Always Get_ _What You Want'_ on the piano. Mom had never seemed annoyed with the repetition of the music; she had just let him do his thing while she knitted or tended to her houseplants.

Their enjoyable week together had ended on New Year's Eve, when Dad returned. He was angry at having missed Christmas and he had vented his frustration on his family. Greg had been forbidden from playing the album more than once per day and he didn't dare try to practice the song on the piano when his Dad was around. He had spent the rest of Christmas vacation simultaneously angry with his Dad and bored out of his mind.

Shaking his head at how vividly those memories had come back, he took a big bite of the first biscuit. It was delicious and just like he remembered. Issy refreshed his coffee and then brought her own plate and coffee to the couch. They ate in companionable silence.

After he swallowed his last bite and let out a loud belch, House said: "These were great. Just like Mom used to make."

Issy giggled: "I'll take that as a complement."

"The belch or the words?"

"Both. Want more coffee?"

House nodded affirmatively and Issy took the empty plates and cups back to the kitchen. As she refilled their mugs, House wandered over to the piano. The song was now firmly stuck in his head and the only way he could release it was to play it. As Issy walked back into the living room with two steaming mugs of coffee, House tentatively picked out the opening bars of the song. She curled up on the couch and listened as he played the whole song.

When he finished, she said: "Interesting choice for a Christmas carol. I thought he was called jolly old Saint Nick, not Saint Mick."

He chuckled: "Mick is certainly no saint. And you're right it's not very Christmas-y. It's just, well, it popped into my head."

After taking a deep breath, he told her about that Christmas when he was ten. When he finished, Issy said: "So you had a good Christmas until he came home. It was nice of your Mom to make all that effort."

"Mom did her best, but if Dad was around, it was his way or the highway. She couldn't overrule him. But there were times when he was gone, that it was nice."

Issy sighed: "That's good. I don't think my mom ever gave a crap about me. After Daddy left, I never got another Christmas or birthday present again. But if she wouldn't cook dinner for me, I guess I shouldn't have expected her to buy me presents either. I tried not to get my hopes up, but you know, you're a kid and you can't help it."

House opened his mouth to ask her a question and just then the phone rang. "Perfect timing", he muttered.

Issy glanced at the Caller ID and her eyes widened. She picked up the phone, held it out at arms' length, and walked towards him. "Speaking of parental units, do you want to take this?"

"May as well get it over with, otherwise Mom will keep calling."

He took the phone from her and hit the 'talk' button. In a clipped voice, he said: "Merry Christmas."

Issy walked around to the far side of the piano bench, straddled it, and then wrapped her arms around him. She buried her face in his shoulder and threw her left leg over his. He wasn't sure if the comfort was to help him get through the phone call or if this closeness was for her own need, but it didn't really matter. He appreciated her warmth while he struggled to get through the holiday call.

His mom's cheery voice replied: "Merry Christmas, dear. Are you having a nice day?"

"Yeah, Mom, we're having a nice day. Issy made me sausage cheese biscuits for breakfast and she's got a ham in the oven for dinner."

"Sounds like you're eating well, dear. Did you exchange presents?"

House thought back to when he had 'unwrapped' Issy in bed, but figured it was best not to tell Mom about that. "Not yet, Mom. Wilson's coming over for dinner and we'll open gifts then."

"Did you get her something nice?"

"I did, but I can't tell you what it is, because Issy is sitting right next to me. And since she is old enough to spell, that won't work either."

Suddenly House had stereo giggling, his mom in his ear and his girlfriend beside him. "Well, you can tell me the next time we speak. Your father wants to wish you a Merry Christmas. Please give my best to Issy. Here he is."

House wasn't fast enough with an excuse this time to avoid talking to his dad. He blew out a frustrated breath and Issy hugged him harder.

His dad came on the line. "Merry Christmas, son."

"Merry Christmas, Dad."

House waited him out; he wasn't going to fill in the silence with small talk.

"You and Wilson having Chinese food for Christmas again? You know you could have come to your Aunt Sara's and had some dried out turkey."

He struggled to maintain a polite tone. "Issy's baking a ham."

"Wilson eats ham? I thought he was a Jew?"

"He is, Dad, but he doesn't keep kosher."

"What's the point of being Jewish if you don't follow the rules? Doesn't make sense to me."

Most aspects of religion did not make sense to House, but he knew better than to get into that type of conversation with his dad. He could not think of a single response that would not provoke an argument with him.

His dad went on without waiting for a reply. "I never could understand him coming over to have Christmas dinner with you anyway. What're a Jew and an atheist doing celebrating Christmas at all?"

His voice took on a sickeningly sweet quality. "So did your little filly get you a present?"

In a stiff formal tone, House replied: "Issy and I will be exchanging gifts but we haven't opened them yet. We'll do it after dinner."

"Hope you didn't spend too much money on her. I doubt she got you anything expensive."

House rolled his eyes. "Issy is a student. I don't expect her to spend a lot of money on me for our first Christmas together. I'm sure I'll like whatever she got me. It doesn't need to be expensive."

"You know, if you start off spending gobs of money on her, she'll expect more and more all the time. You shouldn't do that, son. But I guess you have to do what you have to do to keep a woman around, considering your age and your handicap."

House felt like throwing the phone across the room. He hugged Issy closer to his side, drawing comfort from her warmth. She looked up at him and saw the tension on his face. Smiling, she held up one finger, slipped out from his embrace and ran to the door. She opened it and rang the doorbell twice.

He could have kissed her for that. In fact, as soon as he got off the phone, he would do just that. "Oops, doorbell. I gotta get that, Dad. Issy's got her hands full in the kitchen. Tell Aunt Sara and Uncle Dave I said 'Merry Christmas'. Bye."

Without waiting for a reply, House hung up. A smiling Issy shut the door, ran over to the mantel and punched the button on her stocking. When the Peanuts theme started playing, Issy 'Snoopy-danced' for House.

He roared with laughter. "You little minx. That's the way to celebrate."

When the song ended, House picked it up. Issy stood there in amazement as she listened to him play.

When he had finished, she exclaimed: "Wow! You know the Charlie Brown Christmas song. That is so cool."

"It's actually called _'Linus and Lucy'_, but yeah, it's the one from that program."

"I used to watch that every year. I loved that show. Can you play that middle part again?"

House complied with her request and grinned as he watched her shake her booty to the joyous tune. Christmas was getting better by the minute.

Wilson arrived around 2:00. The two men played Grand Theft Auto for a while and then Wilson helped Issy with the last minute dinner preparations. They sat down to eat around 4PM.

House sighed ecstatically after the first bite of ham. "Issy, this is delicious. I don't know what you did to this ham, but it's the best I've ever had."

"Cherry coke."

Both men said: "What?"

"I poured cherry coke over it, then I put on the pineapple slices and the cherries and then I baked it. It gives the ham a real good flavor, don't ya think?"

Wilson agreed: "Definitely. How did you come up with that idea?"

Issy shrugged: "I've seen people use coke before and put the cherries on the ham, so I figured, hey, why not try this?"

House put his hands together. "Another successful cooking experiment by Issy Walker."

He pecked her cheek and went back to stuffing his face. Besides the ham, Issy had made scalloped potatoes, baked apples with cinnamon, jiffy corn pudding and, in honor of the guys' Chinese food tradition, pork fried rice and stir-fried veggies. Just like at Thanksgiving, there was a ton of food and House ate three helpings of everything, except the veggies. He reasoned that he needed to leave some room for dessert.

Leaving the other two to clean up and put away the leftovers, House collapsed on the couch to digest the large meal. He stared at the white twinkly lights on the tree and marveled at how Issy had made the holiday pleasant for him. He glanced down at the pile of presents under the tree; he had snuck hers out while she had been making breakfast. Suddenly he found himself hoping that she would like her gifts and madly desiring to know what she had gotten him.

He called into the kitchen: "Hey, when are we doing presents? Christmas is almost over and I've been a very good boy."

Issy giggled but Wilson exclaimed: "Ha! You? A good boy? Right. When hell freezes over."

House whined: "Mom! He said a bad word and on Christmas too."

Issy walked over and cupped his face. "Don't worry. Santa knows you've been a good boy. There's presents for you under the tree."

He teased: "I've been good?"

"Yes."

He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer. "How good?"

In a sultry voice, she replied: "Very, very good."

She brushed her lips on his and he responded by capturing her lower lip with his mouth. She shivered when he ran his tongue over her lip and he was pleased with her response.

"Are you one of my presents? Cuz you're not under the tree, but I sure want to unwrap you."

Wilson threw his hands up in the air and exclaimed dramatically: "Oh. My. God. Your gifts are under the tree; you can open them anytime you want. I'll leave now so that you two can get naked again."

House actually liked that idea and he pulled Issy more tightly against his chest. But Issy said: "No, Wilson, don't go. I want us to do the presents all together. And you."

She stabbed House in the chest with her finger. "You can unwrap me later. There just might be some special wrapping paper that you'll get to take off of _this_ present if you're a really good boy."

_Special wrapping paper? What did she mean by that? Only one way to find out. _

"Let's get the show on the road here. Who wants presents? I know I do."


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Issy shook the long flat box that House handed her; she could hear something rattling on the inside. "I wonder what this is."

House rolled his eyes: "Since you don't have X-ray vision, there's only one way to find out. Open it, you silly girl."

Issy slowly started tearing off the paper. It had been a long time since she'd had a gift to open and she wanted to savor the moment.

In an exasperated tone, House said: "That's not how you open a gift. You _rip_ the paper, not peel the tape off inch by inch. It will take forever for you to get it open."

Issy stuck out her tongue at him and said: "It's my gift and I'll open it anyway I want."

"Fine. Where's the controller, Wilson? We can get through a whole game of GTA before Issy opens this one gift."

Issy smirked and then quickly ripped the paper down one side. She peeked under the rip but all she could see was a cardboard box. Brimming with curiosity, she finally tore the rest of the paper off and lifted the lid.

Her jaw dropped when she saw the contents. Inside was a metal tin containing eighty of the finest colored drawing pencils made.

"Oomigod! I can't believe you got me some Caran d'Ache Pablo Pencils! These are the best but they're sooooo expensive. I can't believe you got these for me."

Issy blinked hard to keep away the threatening tears as she turned to face House and gave him a warm smile.

He just chuckled and said: "Wilson, hand Issy that square flat box. It kinda goes with this one."

This time, Issy really got into the game. She immediately tore the wrapping paper off the gift. Inside she found five Strathmore 400 series wirebound sketchbooks.

"Oh, wow! These are so _nice_. This is _really_ good paper."

The gifts meant more to Issy than she could ever express to Greg. Not only had he spent a lot of money on her, but he was also telling her, in his own way, that he approved of her hobby and was actually encouraging her to indulge in it.

She hugged the sketchbooks to her chest. "Thank you so much."

House's smirk was directed at Wilson: "I am sooooo getting some tonight."

To the guys' surprise, Issy echoed his words. "You sure are."

She set the gifts down and flung her arms around his neck. As she planted several kisses across his face, House found himself laughing at her childlike delight. His laughter was loud and infectious. Wilson grinned at his best friend's cheeriness. It was rare to see Greg House in such a happy mood.

Issy squeezed him hard. She felt so giddy. This had to be what it was like to be in love. Her heart felt so big and happy that she thought it was going to explode. She found herself wanting to tell him how she felt, but she knew it wasn't what he felt and if she said the words, it would just spoil the day. Instead she whispered in his ear: "You're so good to me."

A lump appeared in House's throat. If the kid was this happy with paper and colored pencils, she was going to have a coronary when she opened the rest of her gifts. He embraced her tightly and buried his face in the crook of her neck.

Wilson had to look away. He had often seen PDA's between House and Issy, but somehow this was different. There was a palpable emotional connection between them. He had joked with them before about feeling like a 'third wheel', but for the first time, he truly felt like he was intruding on a private moment.

Issy broke from their embrace first. "You have to open one of your gifts now."

She hurried over to the tree and grabbed a package for House. "I hope you like this."

She curled up on the opposite end of the couch, hugging her knees to her chest and eagerly watched him open the gift.

House made sure to keep a neutral expression on his face, just in case he didn't care for the gift. He didn't want to disappoint Issy; she seemed so excited about the present.

He needn't have worried. When he saw the contents of the box, he broke into a huge grin and said: "Oh, you are _so_ the best girlfriend ever."

Issy giggled: "You like it?"

"Oh, yeah! Any red-blooded straight man would."

Wilson asked eagerly: "What is it?"

House held up the contents of the box and smirked: "_The L Word_, season four."

Wilson chuckled: "Alright! Score! That's excellent."

Issy said: "Well, you have the other three seasons, and this one just came out, so I thought you might like it."

"Oh, I do. I'm envisioning an _'L word'_ marathon in the very near future."

"You have a very cool girlfriend, House. Not every woman would buy that program for their man."

"Issy is not just any woman. She is totally the coolest chick ever. OK, you have more stuff to open. Grab that one wrapped in red paper."

"Wait. Wilson hasn't opened one yet. It's his turn."

Issy walked over to the tree and picked up a box that had been wrapped with Hanukkah paper. "It's a little late, but Happy Hanukkah, Wilson."

Wilson was touched that Issy had gotten him a gift. After all, he knew that she didn't have a lot of disposable income. He ripped off the paper and opened the box. Inside was a red striped silk tie from his alma mater, McGill University.

"Wow, Issy, this is great. How did you know I needed a new McGill tie? My last one got colored on with black Magic Marker by one of my pediatric patients. The dry cleaners couldn't get it out."

Issy replied: "I didn't know that, but now you have a new one."

Wilson grinned: "Thanks. It's great. I'll be sure and wear it on the days that I'm only with the adult patients."

House rolled his eyes: "One of them will probably barf on it."

"Barf comes out, unlike Magic Marker."

He reached under the tree and selected a square box wrapped in silver foil paper. "Here, Issy. This one's for you from me."

Issy's eyes shone with pleasure. "Oh, thanks, Wilson. You didn't have to get me anything."

He gave her his goofy grin and shrugged. "It's Christmas, why not?"

House narrowed his eyes. "You got a gift for my girlfriend without checking with me first?"

Wilson said solemnly: "I think you'll approve."

Issy ripped open the box to reveal a Chicago Bears football jersey. "Oomigod! It's Urlacher, number 54! This is so cool, Wilson. Thank you."

She gave him a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek under House's close scrutiny. Wilson held both hands up in the air as if to say, _'I'm not touching her anywhere'. _

Issy held it up against her body and turned around. "Look, Greg, isn't it cool?"

The hem of the shirt fell just to the tops of her thighs. House started envisioning her wearing just the jersey and nothing else. The left side of his mouth curled up in a smile. "I'm looking forward to seeing you in it, babe."

Her smile told him that she might just be reading his mind.

Wilson snagged a square box under the tree and tossed it to House. "Here, buddy. Merry Christmas."

House caught the box and hefted it. "Hmmmm, it feels heavier than just a tie."

Issy quipped: "Maybe it's five ties. One for each day of the week."

"Bite your tongue, woman. And it's heavier than twenty ties."

He hefted the box again and then quickly tore the paper off. He lifted the lid off the box, and there nestled in tissue paper was a very old book. The cover had discolored and was almost black in places. He reverently lifted in out of the box and held it to his nose. Ah, there was nothing like the smell of an old book. He turned to the facepage and read the words out loud: "The Principles and Practices of Modern Surgery by Robert Druitt. 1860. With four hundred and thirty-two illustrations."

Issy said in a hushed voice: "Wow, that's a real antique."

House was pleased but he'd be damned if he let Wilson know that. He lifted his left eyebrow and smirked: "Went to the second-hand book store again, didn't ya Wilson? Barnes and Nobles too expensive for your wallet?"

"Well, where's the fun in a new medical book? It has all those _modern_ techniques and that's just so ordinary. This one is a classic. It has all kinds of interesting surgical instruments and anesthesia that we don't use anymore, like tying the patient to the bed and giving him a shot of whiskey right before amputating his leg."

House nodded: "Yeah, it will make interesting bathroom reading. Excellent. Well, I guess you could open your gift."

Wilson's jaw dropped: "You got me a present? Seriously?"

House rolled his eyes. "See the box under the tree wrapped in the Sunday funnies? That's yours."

'Garfield', 'Blondie' and 'Cathy' adorned a package the size of a shoebox. When Wilson tore the comic strip paper off, it revealed a box that advertised Nike runners. Wilson hefted it: "It feels too light for running shoes."

"You think I'd buy you _shoes_? I'm not your wife or your mother."

Wilson lifted the lid and dug through a large wad of tissue paper before he pulled out his gift. It was a navy blue tie with a stethoscope imprinted on it.

"A tie?"

House chuckled: "And not just any tie. It's a _doctor_ tie. You wear that out to a bar and all the chicks you hit on will know instantly that you're a doctor. They'll be all over you before you can even flash your American Express card."

Wilson stared at the length of cloth in his hands. "_You_ got _me_ a tie?"

"Hey, you usually get me one. Thought I'd return the favor."

"Uh, thank you. Wow, I got two ties this Christmas. That's pretty amazing."

Issy said shyly: "I have something else for you, Greg."

He smiled indulgently at her. "Well, bring it on, babe."

She handed him a small lightweight box. Again she curled up in the corner of the couch and watch anxiously as he ripped off the paper.

He grinned when he saw the contents of the box. "I hate to repeat myself, but you are _so_ the best girlfriend ever."

Wilson said: "And I'll repeat _myself_ by asking, what is it?"

House reached in and pulled the gift out of the box. "Two tickets to the Meadowlands Motorcycle Expo next month. Too bad that it's January and it will be too damn cold to ride the bike up there, but it will be really cool seeing all the bikes and stuff."

He extended his arm towards Issy. "C'mere, my hot motorcycle mama and give your man some sugar."

Issy moved into his embrace and he kissed her soundly. House was thrilled with the thoughtfulness of her gifts. She had succeeded in getting him things that he really liked; there's no way that she could have gotten gift giving advice from Wilson. Although he had to admit, the antique medical book was rather interesting and quite a change from Wilson's usual gifts. Now he wanted to see how Issy liked the rest of her gifts.

"It's your turn, babe. Wilson, hand Issy the red package first and then the green one."

Issy ripped off the red wrapping paper and lifted the lid on the box. When she saw the contents of the box, her heart did a flip-flop and it was a few minutes before she could speak.

She turned to look at him, her eyes wide as saucers. "Y-you got m-me an I-Pod?"

_Damn!_ He didn't think it would get her so emotional that she would start to stutter. If he had suspected that, he would have insisted on opening the gifts when they were alone.

He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and said in a casual tone: "Yeah, babe. That boom box of yours is so last year. You needed an upgrade. And look, I've already put a bunch of music on it for you."

House showed Issy the library that he had started for her. There was Billy Joel, the Rolling Stones, the Eagles, Jimi Hendrix, Jackson Browne and of course, Eric Clapton. Her new favorite blues artists like B.B. King and Buddy Guy were there. He had even loaded the music from her cheesy Christmas CD.

"You like it?"

Afraid to trust her voice, Issy nodded and threw her arms around his neck. Never in a million years did she think he would get her such an amazing gift. The pencils and the paper were nice, certainly a decent enough present for him to give his faux girlfriend, but this was just over the top.

_He must have done this to impress Wilson. He can't possibly mean to really give me this. It's probably a new one for himself and he's fooling Wilson into thinking it's for me._

She hugged him tightly and planted several kisses on his cheek. House chuckled and kissed her back.

Wilson smirked: "I think you've overwhelmed her, House. Either that or she's lost her voice."

Issy pulled back from their embrace and gave Greg a warm smile. She managed to get control of her voice and said: "I guess I am overwhelmed. I didn't expect such a lovely gift and you loaded all that music for me. I can't thank you enough."

He wiggled his eyebrows and said: "You can later, after you-know-who is gone."

Wilson picked up the other gift: "Ready to open the green box now?"

Concerned about her emotional response, House almost wanted her to open it later, but it was a little too late for that now. Issy had grabbed the box from Wilson and was tearing the paper off.

She managed to keep the stutter out of her voice this time. "Oh my God, Greg. This is amazing. I can't believe you did this."

The box contained a Bose Sounddock digital music system. Issy could place her I-Pod in the dock and broadcast the music through Bose speakers.

"If I wasn't overwhelmed before, I am now. These gifts are just awesome. Thank you so much."

Issy embraced Greg; he hugged her back and tousled her hair. "Wait until you hear it. For a small system, it has damn good speakers."

Wilson had to chuckle as he watched yet another PDA; without a doubt, the two of them would be naked before he got behind the wheel of his car. "I should probably be taking off now."

Issy implored: "Oh, no, wait, Wilson. We haven't had dessert yet. Let me go get it."

She hurried into the kitchen and started preparing the desserts. While she was working on that, House started fiddling with her I-Pod and the speakers. Within a minute, the sounds of Elvis singing _'Santa Bring my Baby Back to Me' _filled the room.

"I thought you didn't like Christmas music."

House shrugged: "This CD's not so bad. It's got some good artists on it and no religious crap either."

Wilson nodded: "Hey, there's one more gift under the tree. Who's that for?"

"That's for Issy, but she's going to open it later."

He waggled his eyebrows, letting Wilson get the hint that the gift was too risqué to be opened in front of him.

Wilson grinned in understanding: "Gotcha."

It was almost too easy sometimes to fool Wilson, but after Issy's emotional reaction to the I-Pod, House definitely didn't want her to open that last gift in front of Wilson. This last one might really tip her over the edge and then there would be a lot of explaining to do. Better to open it after he had gone.

Issy walked back into the room, carrying a plate containing candy cane brownies and Christmas cookies. As the I-Pod played Christmas music, the three of them ate their dessert and chatted about how they would spend the rest of their vacation. Wilson had taken the week off too and was planning a quick trip to see his parents. He was leaving tomorrow morning.

Wilson left out a sigh: "Issy, these are the best brownies I've ever had. Putting the candy cane pieces in them was a stroke of shear genius. Maybe you should reconsider your career plans and become a chef instead."

Issy giggled: "I'm glad you like my cooking, but I got this recipe from the Food Network. It's not original."

"Yeah, but still. They're really good."

House interjected: "Issy will pack you up a few to go, won't you Iss?"

Wilson chuckled: "Anxious to get that last present unwrapped, huh? Well, I should get going. I have an early flight in the morning and I needed to finish packing."

Issy wrapped up some brownies and cookies for him; Wilson bid them one last 'Merry Christmas' and then he took his leave.

Finally they were alone. Issy sank down on the couch and started fiddling with the I-Pod while House limped over to the tree and grabbed the last package.

As he handed her the box, she protested: "Greg, it's too much. You've given me so much already. I can't accept anything else."

"Well, I had this made special for you. I can't take it back, so you have to accept it."

"Alright, but I feel bad that I didn't get you more presents."

He put his finger under her chin and lifted her gaze to meet his. He simply said: "Don't."

She looked at him for a long moment; then the words tumbled out of her in a rush: "The I-Pod's not really for me, is it? It was just a ruse to impress Wilson. This one's my real present, this and the pencils, and the I-Pod's really a new one for you."

_What? Where had she dreamed that one up? Did she really think that he was going to snatch the gifts back after putting on a dog-and-pony show for Wilson?_

He tenderly stroked her cheek: "That was no ruse. It's all for you, baby."

Her voice was filled with childlike wonder. "All of it?"

House nodded: "Every single one. C'mon, open this last one."

She slowly opened the box and gasped when she saw the contents. House had taken that old photo of Issy and her dad, had it restored and then placed it inside of a gold frame.

Issy was thunderstruck. She couldn't believe that he had gone to so much trouble for her and had spent so much money too. This was beyond anything she could have ever imagined. If he was this wonderful to her, his fake girlfriend, what must he have been like to his real girlfriends? They must have been treated like queens. How could they have ever let him go? She wished that she didn't have to.

With tears in her eyes, Issy turned to face House. There was a quiver in her voice as she spoke: "I can't b-believe you d-did t-this! T-thank you so m-much."

Ever mindful of his bad thigh, she straddled his lap and hugged his neck tightly. A few tears leaked out as she whispered: "You've been so good to me. I will never ever forget you."

Her statement made House feel sad. What to him were small gifts were incredibly amazing to Issy. It was still hard to wrap his mind around the fact that life had been so cruel to her as to make _him_ look like Mr. Rogers. Her last statement also reminded him of the temporary situation that they were in and he felt conflicted about that. He still wasn't sure how he was going to react when June arrived.

He tried to make light of her words. "Oh, I'm not so nice."

As she covered his face with kisses, he could feel the wetness on her cheeks.

"Yes, you are. You're wonderful. I'm not just a hole for you to stick your dick into. You treat me like a real person."

The degrading comment that she made about herself shook him to the core. She couldn't possibly think that _that_ was all she had to offer a man, could she?

He tried to gather his thoughts and formulate some words. "Issy. I"

But before he could say anything else, she kissed him long and hard on the mouth. "I have one last surprise for you too, one that I couldn't give you in front of Wilson. I'll be right back."

Before he could stop her, she scampered off to the bedroom. He took those few minutes to try to sort out his feelings, something that he usually avoided at all cost. After Stacy, he was sure that he would never love again. He swore not to ever put himself into such a vulnerable situation where his heart could be ripped out of his chest and run over with a tractor-trailer. And yet, here he was, wondering if he was falling in love with the sexy young thing that shared his bed.

When Issy came back into the room, all conscious thought fled his brain.

She was dressed in a red velvet low cut top and a tiny matching skirt. Both pieces were trimmed with white fur and the outfit looked like it belonged on Santa's naughtiest elf. To complete the ensemble, she had a Santa hat on her head.

In a sultry voice, she said: "Remember the special wrapping paper I mentioned? Would you like to unwrap your last present or shall I do it for you?"

He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. He had to settle for waving his hand at her to continue.

Strutting over to the I-Pod, she scrolled through the library until she found the tune that she wanted. The sounds of Eartha Kitt singing _'Santa Baby'_ filled the room as Issy started stripping for him. The little red top unzipped in the front to reveal a sexy red push-up bra, that was struggling to keep her pert breasts contained within. Despite the thin white scar that now marred her breasts, House still thought she had one of the best racks that he'd ever held in his hands.

The little red skirt was unzipped next. When it slid down over her hips to reveal a tiny red G-string underneath, all the blood in his brain rushed down to his other head and all thoughts fled his mind as he watched her give him a very sexy bump-and-grind.

With her back to him, she popped open her bra and slowly slid the straps off of her shoulders. She gave him a coy look over her shoulder and then spun around as she whipped the bra off. House was sure that his erection would just pop through his pants when she tossed the bra aside and pranced towards him wearing only the G-string and the Santa hat.

She had the most adorable pouty look on her face as she straddled his lap.

Her core brushed against his erection and he groaned.

As she gently nibbled on his earlobe, Issy whispered: "Anything you want, Doc, anything at all. Merry Christmas."

Part of him wanted to just carry her to the rug in front of the fire and take her, hard and fast. Another part of him was tempted to ask for something kinky, just to see if she would give him _anything_ he wanted for Christmas. What would her reaction be if he wanted to call a hooker for a 3-way, or if he asked for around-the-world?

House didn't act out either one of those thoughts. He couldn't. He wanted to cling to his girlfriend fantasy as long as he possibly could. And there was a small part of him that wanted to let her know that she was so much more than just a sex toy to him.

He tilted his head back, exposing his neck and she obligingly kissed and nibbled on his favorite spots.

Finally he managed to form a few words. "Bubble bath."

She stopped her nibbling long enough to ask: "You want a bubble bath, Greg?"

"For two."

She gave him a sweet smile. "You're on."

Issy drew them a nice hot bath with some vanilla scented bubble bath. Once it was ready, House stripped off and carefully climbed in. Once he was settled, Issy climbed in between his legs, resting her back up against his chest. She could feel his hardness pressing up against her ass; she wiggled against him and giggled when he groaned.

House played with the bubbles and rubbed them against her breasts; Issy smiled and sighed at the lovely sensations. They kissed and caressed, enjoying their time together. When the water started to cool off, they rinsed off the bubbles and climbed out. As they dried each other off, their kisses and caresses grew more urgent. Lips locked, they stumbled into the bedroom together and fell onto the bed. Their lovemaking was tender, yet urgent with need. When House slid inside of Issy, they both trembled at the delicious contact. He rode her slowly at first and then picked up the pace as she urged him on. His thrusts were hard and filled her completely. When Issy fell over the edge, his name emerged as a scream from her lips.

Her reaction increased his passion and he pumped harder. It only took a few more strokes before he reached his edge and fell over into the abyss after her.

He collapsed on top of her, his breathing merely a series of desperate gasps for air.

"You're going to give me a heart attack one day, babe. I think I'm too old to keep up with a hot young thing like you."

Her walls tightened around his softening member eliciting another groan from him. Her arms and legs held him tightly against her body.

"You're not old, Doc. Plus I'm about to become a nurse; so even if you did have a heart attack, I could do CPR and revive you."

He rolled to his side, bringing her along with him. "It wouldn't be a bad way to go."

"What way? A heart attack?"

"Dying in your arms after mind-blowing sex. I'd shuffle off this mortal coil with a smile on my face."

She caressed his cheek: "You're not going anywhere just yet, Doc. You got a lot of time left."

_And I want to spend it with you._

House shook his head; where had that thought come from?

He kissed her cheek: "You're right baby. I'm not going anywhere. You, on the other hand, could slip out to the kitchen and bring us another brownie."

Issy giggled at his wheedling tone and scampered naked down the hall to comply with his request. As House watched her lovely ass wiggle away from him, the thought crossed his mind that this had to be his best Christmas ever.


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

House debated with himself the better way to get to the city. They could drive the 53 miles north on I-95, deal with the traffic getting through the Lincoln Tunnel and mid-town Manhattan and pay a high tab to park the car in the city for four days. Or they could take the train from Princeton Junction, suffer through thirteen stops until they reached Penn Station in New York and then cab it over to the hotel.

In the end, the train seemed the better bet. The numerous stops would be a pain, but he wouldn't have to deal with the traffic and if his leg bothered him, he could get up and walk the aisles.

Issy was both excited and nervous about going to New York. She was excited about going to her first concert and staying in a hotel, yet she was also nervous about returning to the city where she had spent two years of her life as a waif on the streets. The city was going to look a little different to her now that her circumstances had changed. She giggled to herself when she realized that she had never actually eaten in a New York restaurant before, only in the alleyways behind them. Greg had promised to take her to a French bistro; she was really looking forward to that. Taking the train sounded like fun too.

The train ride was uneventful and they grabbed a cab right outside Penn Station. As the cab drove up Sixth Avenue, Issy became more and more excited. The park was just ahead and she was anxious to see it again. She turned her head and stared at the park while they rode the short block of Central Park South to the hotel. She was just wondering if Greg would feel up to taking a little walk in the park when the cab stopped in the circular drive of the Plaza hotel. The cabby got out and walked to the trunk of his car as Greg opened the door on his side.

"Greg, what are you doing?"

"Getting out, babe. This is where we're staying."

"This is the Plaza! This is one of the fanciest hotels in the city. You're yanking my chain. We're not staying here."

He chuckled: "Oh, yes we are."

He got out of the car and she slowly followed him. The bellhop had already approached with the luggage cart and was loading their bags onto it. Greg paid the cabdriver and started to follow the bellhop.

Issy hissed: "Greg! I can't go in there."

He frowned: "Why not?"

She sputtered: "It's, it's the Plaza. I just, I can't, I don't."

House put his arm around her and gently kissed her cheek. "Yes, you can. You are not a homeless kid anymore. You're Isabelle Walker, nursing student, and further more, you're the infamous Dr. Greg House's girlfriend. Chin up, babe, we're going in."

He guided her through the front door and kept his arm around her through the check-in process. Issy tried really hard not to be a rube, but it was difficult not to gaze around at the beauty of the hotel lobby. The check-in process went very quickly and before Issy knew it, they were being shown to their twelfth floor room.

While the bellhop took their luggage into the bedroom of their suite, House amusedly watched as Issy took in their hotel accommodations. The suite had a spacious sitting room, decorated in a rather sophisticated style. She ran her hand over the back of the Louis XV style sofa as she walked timidly around the room, taking note of the wall-mounted flat-screen TV and high-tech stereo system. Turning to Greg, she stage-whispered: "This is very nice."

He smiled: "I was hoping you'd like it."

Issy's eyes widened: "Like it? Oomigod, it's amazing. I've."

The bellhop reappeared and a blushing Issy clapped her hand over her mouth and turned to face the window.

"If I may, sir, allow me to show you a few of the amenities of this suite."

House allowed the young man to point out some of the more hidden luxuries of the suite, tipped him extravagantly and finally closed the door behind him.

"Come on, Issy, let's see the rest of the place."

She took his hand as they wandered through the rest of the suite. The bathroom had double sinks, a marble tub big enough for two and a separate glass-enclosed shower.

"Oh, look at that tub. You and I are having a bubble bath tonight, babe."

Issy peered inside of it. "It's really big. And what are those?"

House followed her finger and said: "Ah, those are jets. This is a Jacuzzi tub. We'll get a little whirlpool action while we soak."

Issy whispered: "Wow. This is really something."

He chuckled: "You don't have to whisper, babe. It's just you and me here."

She gave him a wry smile. "You must think I'm really stupid or something. It's just I've never stayed anywhere like this before."

He kissed her forehead. "You're not stupid. This is just an experience that you haven't had. I've been in nice hotels before, but not the Plaza. Come on, let's check out the bed."

The bedroom of the suite contained a king-sized bed with pillow-top mattress and more pillows than Issy had seen outside of a bedding store. The headboard, bedside tables and the two chairs at the foot of the bed were also in the Louis XV style. The most modern item in the room was a wall-mounted flat-screen TV opposite the bed. House immediately laid down on the bed, pronounced it comfortable and clicked on the TV, while the open drapes drew Issy to the window.

"Greg, we overlook the park."

"Of course we do, babe. Why stay at the Plaza and not have a park view? That would be like going to Paris and never seeing the Eiffel Tower."

While Issy stared at the view, House continued playing with the remote control. "Oh, yeah. We can get porn on demand. This is a great hotel."

When she didn't reply, he glanced over at her. She seemed to be completely entranced by the view. He chuckled and scrolled through the selections. The available titles amused him; Christmas porn seemed to be big at this time of year. He started reading the titles out loud. _'Christmas Cums Early.' 'Here Comes Santa Claus.' 'Santa is Coming All Over Town.'_

There was still no response from Issy. He wondered what it was about the view that had her so enraptured. Setting the remote down on the bed, he came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head on top of hers. He gave her ass a gentle grind to let her know that his interests were not located outside of the window.

"Whatcha looking at, babe?"

"The park. The view from up here is amazing. Look, you can see the Gapstow Bridge on the far side of the Pond from here. That's like three blocks away."

She sighed: "Even in winter with most of the trees bare, it's still beautiful. I always thought it was the most amazing thing to have such a big park in the middle of this city. I'm sure I walked every inch of that park when I lived here. It's funny."

Her voice trailed off and he had to ask: "What's funny, babe?"

She tapped her finger against the glass. "I used to sleep in Central Park and look up at this hotel. Now I'm actually going to sleep up here and look down on the park. Don't you think it's funny?"

'Funny' was not quite the word that he thought applied in this situation, but the correct adjective had gotten lost somewhere between his brain and his tongue. As he stared at the park, he tried to imagine her as a scared teenager looking for a safe place to sleep in the vast acreage below. It was a picture that filled him with trepidation and he suddenly felt the need to protect her. Against what, he couldn't say, as they were currently safe and sound in their twelfth floor hotel room, but the need was there nevertheless.

Issy turned in his arms: "I don't know what made you decide to splurge and bring me to such a fancy place, but I'm so grateful that you did."

Her arms snaked around his neck as she tiptoed up to kiss his lips. Their tongues tangoed and his desire was rekindled. One hand slid down her back and cupped her ass, pressing her closer to his body.

They broke for air with a little gasp and immediately locked lips again. House wanted her with a desperation that he had not felt in a very long time. It wasn't just physical need; it was more than that. In some ways, it reminded him of what he had felt for Stacy, so many years ago. He dared not put that word to what he was feeling. He couldn't take the risk. Reminding himself that this was strictly a business arrangement, he broke the kiss and snarked: "How grateful are you, my little Issy-belle?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, House realized that Arnello had asked that question of her just last month. _Oh Christ, what an ass I am, treating her like a whore again!_

If Issy remembered the event, she didn't let on. Eyes full of desire, she caressed his cheek: "Very, very grateful. Let me show you how much."

HOUSE MD ++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After Issy showed House her gratitude and he returned the favor, they fell into a deep slumber, awakening around 5PM. After taking a long hot shower, they dressed and caught a cab to Tout Va Bien, the French bistro that House had told her about.

The cab went south on Fifth Avenue and Issy hoped to catch a glimpse of the tree at Rockefeller Center, but they turned right at 51st Street, one block before the Center. She was slightly disappointed, but House assured her that they would go see the tree after dinner. The restaurant was just off of 8th Avenue and he thought he could handle a three-block walk to see the tree. Silently he cursed his disability; New York was such a great city to walk around, but he would have to take it easy if he were going to get through the whole weekend without stressing out his leg.

The maître d' greeted House like an old friend. They conversed in French for a moment and then the man turned towards Issy and asked: "And who is this lovely mam'selle that you have graced my restaurant with tonight?"

Issy blushed. House put his arm around her and made the introductions. "This is my girlfriend, Isabelle. Issy, meet Henri, proprietor extraordinaire."

Issy replied in French: _"Pleased to meet you."_

Henri grasped her hand and brought it to his lips. "Enchanté, mam'selle. House, not only is she lovely, but she speaks French. Where did you find such a goddess?"

House chuckled: "At the hospital, believe it or not."

"Humph, perhaps I should change careers. Alas, it is most likely too late for me. Let me find you a nice table."

Henri snapped his fingers at one of the busboys and barked some instructions to him in French. It became obvious to Issy that House was a familiar customer to Henri, as the table that the busboy prepared for them was not only on the end of a long string of small tables, but he had removed the adjacent table, which allowed House to have adequate leg room.

As Henri seated them and handed out the menus, he inquired: "Perhaps a nice merlot, tonight?"

"Sounds good."

They perused the menu as Henri went off to get the wine. "Have you ever tried mussels, Issy?"

"No, I haven't."

"Ah, we have to get those for an appetizer. They are outstanding here."

"Maybe this sounds cliché, but I'd like to try the onion soup."

Pleased that she was requesting what she wanted, he went on: "Not cliché at all, and it's very good here. Do you know which entrée you want? I'm having the sirloin au poivre myself."

"I don't know. There are so many things that I'd like to try."

As he watched her peruse the menu, House leaned against the back of his chair and stretched his leg out. He really appreciated Henri removing a table for him and always tipped him extravagantly.

Issy bit her lip as she continued to scan the menu and House thought she looked simply adorable. He had also enjoyed that most becoming blush that had appeared on her face when he had introduced her to Henri.

Finally she looked up at him and said: "I can't decide between the lamb chops and the Boeuf Bourguignon."

"Get the lamb chops. You won't regret it."

Henri returned with the wine, and after House sampled and approved it, he poured it out for the two of them. House gave him their order and he left to place it with the kitchen.

Issy really enjoyed the meal. The food was everything that Greg had said it would be and she liked hearing the snippets of French conversation floating around them. It was almost as if they had been transported to a café in Paris. She tried to remember more of her high school French and attempted a few sentences. He smiled at her efforts, gently corrected her grammar when needed and spoke slowly enough that she could follow him.

As they lingered over crème Brulee and coffee, Issy sighed with pleasure. This had been the most romantic 'date' that she had ever been on. When Greg reached across the table and took her hand, it was like an electrical charge shooting up her arm, and she wondered if he could feel it too.

After paying the bill, the couple walked east on 51st Street, heading towards Rockefeller Center. Halfway there, House remembered what he had forgotten: cross-town blocks were a lot longer than uptown blocks. His pace slowed and Issy fell right into step with him. She took his hand and chatted about all manner of things, which helped to distract him as they inched their way towards Rockefeller Center.

She had been surprised when he suggested walking there, but she was certainly up for it. Now that she wasn't scratching for survival and scanning trashcans for food, walking around the city seemed rather enjoyable. She knew that the walk would not be easy for him and silently vowed to give him a good massage when they got back to the hotel.

To House's relief, a bench was vacated just as they approached the perimeter of the tree and they managed to snag it. House put his arm around Issy and the two snuggled close. They leaned back and stared up at the magnificent tree.

It was too cold to sit for very long. After a few minutes, House nudged Issy out of her revelry and said: "Leg's getting stiff. We need to get a move on."

After a quick peek at the ice skaters, House and Issy headed towards 6th Avenue where they grabbed a cab back to the Plaza. House hated to take a cab for a mere nine uptown blocks, but after limping three cross-town blocks, he knew better than to push it. He wanted to be in shape for the rest of the weekend.

It had been a lovely evening but as far as Issy was concerned, it wasn't over yet. After shedding their coats, she led House into the bedroom and proceeded to strip his clothes off.

He chuckled amusedly as he watched her unbutton his shirt: "Do Christmas trees make you horny, my little minx, or is it just the _really_ big ones?"

Issy smiled as she pulled off his shirt and tossed it to the side. She ran her hands down his naked chest and then knelt in front of him. She mouthed him through his jeans and then said: "I like your big one."

Hands on his belt buckle, she said: "I was just thinking; how many ways can I make you happy tonight?"

She unzipped his pants and pulled them down. The boxers followed. House's breath hitched when her soft lips touched the head of his cock. "You're off to a good start."

Issy delicately ran her tongue up and down his shaft before circling the head and lapping up the drop of pre-cum that had leaked out. She took half of his length into her mouth and gently suckled as she caressed the underside of his cock with her tongue. Suddenly she deep-throated him and his cock was mating with her tonsils. Her tongue continued to swirl against the sensitive underside as she pulsed up and down on his cock. The pleasure was so intense that he could barely speak, much less stand.

"Ah! Oh God, sweetheart, I can't. Stand. Up. Sit. I gotta sit."

He collapsed onto the bed whilst her mouth maintained a gentle grip on his cock. Once he was comfortably situated, she settled in between his legs and started sucking in earnest. His hand fisted in her hair and he alternated between watching the action and closing his eyes to heighten the sensual pleasure.

"Christ, Issy, I'm about to come and you're not even naked yet."

Her lips and tongue toyed with the head of his cock. Her breath felt cool on his damp skin as she whispered: "Want me to get naked?"

He hissed: "Yes."

While maintaining as much contact as possible between her lips and his cock, Issy managed to take off her blouse and bra. The look in her eyes was wanton as she gave the head one last lick and then placed his erect red member between her luscious white breasts. She grabbed his hands and placed them on her breasts; he pushed them together as she slid his cock up and down in the valley between her tits.

She could see his Adam's apple bob; his breath hitched. "God, you're so fucking beautiful. You keep that up and I'll come all over those gorgeous melons of yours."

Issy gave him a sensual smile. "Whatever makes you happy."

"You wanna know what makes me happy?"

Without waiting for an answer, he slipped his hands under her arms and pulled her up onto the bed. His breathing was rough with excitement as he unzipped her pants and pulled them off. He spread her thighs apart and smiled. "That pretty pink pussy of yours makes me happy."

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "Dessert was a long time ago."

Issy squealed with pleasure when his tongue made first contact with her clit. He licked and kissed her most sensitive spot until she was dripping wet with desire and begging him to fuck her.

Gripping Issy around the hips, House rolled onto his back and pulled her on top of him. "Ride me, sweetheart."

As Issy positioned his cock at her entrance, she briefly wondered about his use of that particular endearment. He had not called her 'sweetheart' before today. She didn't have time to ponder long; once she slid down the length of his thick cock, her mind lost the ability for rational thought and all she could focus on was the pleasurable feelings coursing between her legs.

House let her control the movements; he wanted to stretch out the pleasure for as long as possible. He loved it when Issy was on top; there were so many advantages. Great view of her beautiful melons, being able to play with all her naughty bits, the ability to make himself last longer and there was the added bonus of no pressure on his bad leg.

He squeezed her breasts and pinched her nipples as she rode him, eliciting the most delightful sounds from her throat. As his fingers slowly trailed down her body, he could see the desire rising in her eyes. She whimpered as he toyed with her pubic hair.

Her plea was a whisper: "Please."

"Please, what?"

"Touch me."

He touched her inner thigh. "Here?"

She shook her head.

House stroked her other thigh. "Over here?"

Issy whimpered and shook her head again.

He ran his fingers through her hair again, casually brushing her clit with his thumb. "Tell me where."

She gasped: "My clit. Touch my clit, please."

"Good girl. You know I like it when you ask for what you want."

He pressed his thumb against her clit and it was as if a jolt of electricity had passed through her body. Her eyes closed, her head jerked back and her vagina clenched down on his cock as she cried out in pleasure.

"That's it, baby. Come for me."

He pressed harder and thrust himself up into her pussy at the same time. While the first touch had set off a minor tremor, this time it touched off a full-blown orgasm of earthquake proportions. Issy came with a loud cry, the orgasm searing through her body.

House toyed with her clit until he was certain that she was at the 'almost painful' stage, and then he gripped her hips with both hands and thrust his cock forcefully in and out of her tight pussy. Her wet heat was better than any drug and it wasn't long before he fell over the edge and joined her in orgasmic bliss. He pumped into her two or three more times as he rode out his orgasm and then pulled her down onto his chest.

Their bodies were covered with sweat; their breaths were coming in gasps and heaves; yet House never felt better in his life. As the pleasure biochemicals raced through his body, he wished that he could just bottle the stuff and snort it whenever he needed it. For that brief span of time, there was no pain anywhere in his body, not even in his always-aching thigh. Issy had done this to him; his sweet, beautiful girlfriend had fucked him into the best coma of his life. He clung to her, not wanting to let the feeling fade.

Issy let out a contented sigh, wishing that she could freeze this moment in time. How could anything ever top having great sex with this wonderful man in the Plaza Hotel? She caressed his cheek softly with her thumb and smiled against his skin. This was a moment to savor, to file away in her mental memory banks for later viewing on cold lonely nights. He was holding her so tightly and she felt so safe and warm.

She felt his lips nibbling on her ear and a murmur: "Issy-belle, my sweet Issy-belle."

The nickname gave her a thrill. As much as she tried to suppress her feelings, a name for Greg popped into her mind. Issy kissed his cheek and murmured_: "Mon_ _trésor." _

He chuckled: "You find me a treasure? I'm not sure that many would agree with you."

House gripped her tightly as he rolled them onto their sides. His tone was mocking, but his eyes were serious. "Or is it just my sexual prowess that you treasure?"

How could such an amazing man think that _that_ was all there was to treasure about him? Not for the first time, Issy wondered if it was the leg that contributed to his moments of self-doubt.

"Well, you _are_ a stud muffin, but I was referring to the entire handsome, brilliant package."

He laughed so hard that his soft cock finally fell out of her pussy. "So I'm a handsome, brilliant stud muffin?"

Issy propped herself up on one elbow and replied: "Yes, you are. A handsome, brilliant, talented, funny and sweet stud muffin."

Each adjective had been punctuated with a peck on the lips. Then she quickly moved down his body and took his soft cock into her mouth, licking him clean as she always did after sex.

As he watched her work, House smiled and petted her hair. She certainly acted like she really liked him. If she were his real girlfriend, he'd be in seventh heaven. But as things stood, he'd have to settle for what he could get while this deal lasted.

When Issy finished cleaning him to her satisfaction, she crawled up the bed and lay down next to him again. "How else can I make you happy tonight?"

He chuckled inwardly; she really was too good to be true. "There's a bar out in the sitting room. Why don't you see if they have any decent scotch or bourbon and pour us a shot?"

"OK."

Issy scampered out of the room while House watched her pert, round ass bounce away from him. He shook his head to disperse the sexy thoughts in his brain and then repositioned the pillows so that he could sit up in bed. Once he was settled, he grabbed the remote.

By the time Issy returned with a glass in each hand, he was scrolling through the movie list. She set the glasses down on the bedside table, climbed in next to him and then handed him one glass. "They had Laphroaig, hope that's OK."

He took a sip and enjoyed the smooth burn as it went down. "Oh, yeah. That's good. Now, what do you think? _'Santa is Cuming All Over Town'_ or '_Christmas Cums Early'_?

She giggled: "Let's see how many times Santa can 'come' all over town."

House fired up the movie; Issy settled in on his left side with her head on his shoulder. They sipped their scotch and laughed at the schmaltzy sexual antics on the screen. The movie Santa was getting a lot more than milk and cookies at the homes he went to. After a half hour or so of watching Santa get some, House felt Mt. Gregory starting to perk up. Before long, he was tenting the sheet. When Issy noticed it, she drained her scotch and crept under the covers. Just as her lips wrapped around his cock, a big-breasted blonde got down on her knees in front of Santa. House grinned; this was cool. He and Santa were getting a blowjob at the same time. House drained his scotch as he watched Santa's dick get gobbled by the buxom blonde and then he lifted the sheet so that he could watch his own personal porn. His brunette was way sexier than that blonde any day.


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter 42

After a delicious room-service breakfast, House and Issy took a cab down 5th Avenue into the Village. Vintage records were on House's mind and there were a few good shops down in that part of Manhattan. They hit Bleecker Bob's Golden Oldies first and then walked the three short blocks to Bleecker Street Records. House made a couple of purchases at each shop and then they had a slice and soda for lunch at Famous Joe's Pizza. A cab took them over to Finyl Vinyl on East 6th Street and after that they headed to the Strand Bookstore on Broadway and 12th. Even though Issy didn't buy anything, she had a great time looking around. When she had previously lived in New York, she never went into the shops. She never had any money to spend for nonessentials anyway and being homeless made her very conscious of her appearance and her aroma. The only store that she would spend time in was Barnes and Nobles as they didn't seem to care if she found a quiet corner to read and sip a coffee.

All the walking and shopping took its toll on House; he actually dozed off in the cab on the way back to the hotel. Once they returned to their room, Issy immediately drew a hot bath to soothe his aching leg. The warm water and the jet action of the Jacuzzi did wonders for him; a massage and a nap thoroughly revived him for the night's activity.

The Apollo Theatre was up in Harlem; House hired a car and driver through the front desk. After the show was over, he would merely have to phone the guy and they would get picked up. With the sold-out crowd, he didn't want to have to hang around on a street corner searching for a cab with a thousand other people.

They had primo orchestra seats, right section and the 5th row on the aisle. House wondered if those seats had been chosen especially for him. The aisle seat gave him legroom and yet being in the right section assured that only a few other people would have to crawl over him to get to their own seats. His right thigh was positioned next to Issy where his chances of getting bumped were minimal.

As they settled into their seats, Issy asked: "Have you ever seen Buddy Guy in concert before?"

House shook his head: "No, I haven't, but I've heard that he puts on a helluva show. I've read that Jimi Hendrix used to cancel his own shows to watch Buddy Guy perform. I also heard that he'll pull pretty women out of the audience to strum the strings for him while he just plays the frets."

Issy's eyes widened: "No way. Oomigod, I couldn't do that."

"Oh, yeah, you could. If he approaches you, I'm pushing your ass up on the stage."

The lights dimmed and they ceased their conversation. The show was everything Issy thought it would be and more. Not only was the music great, but somehow being part of an audience seemed to increase the enjoyment. She wasn't alone in that feeling; she could see that House was really enjoying the show too. He hadn't stopped smiling since they had arrived.

Buddy Guy did pull a woman up on stage with him, but happily for Issy, he had chosen someone from the opposite side of the theatre.

House murmured in her ear: "Too bad. I had been hoping he would pick you. That would have been so cool."

He kissed her cheek and turned back towards the stage. Issy admired his profile for a moment and then did the same.

All too soon, the show was over. While the rest of the audience filed out, House and Issy remained in their seats while he phoned the driver. When the crowd had thinned, they made their way outside and easily found their car.

As they rode back to their hotel, Issy raved about the concert and thanked House once again for taking her.

"Hey, the credit belongs to the Senator. He's the one who got us the tickets."

Issy didn't say anything to that; the Senator may have sent the tickets, but it was Greg who had chosen his concert date and she was still thrilled that he had picked her.

House asked: "So what would you like to do tomorrow?"

"Anything you want to do is OK with me."

"Isn't there anything you want to do?"

"I saw my first concert, which was totally awesome and I saw the tree. So I'm good."

House chuckled; she was just too easy. "A while back, you mentioned that dry cleaner guy. Did you want to go see him?"

Issy's cheerful face sobered. "Oh, I don't know. He probably wouldn't remember me anyway. Maybe I'll do it another time."

"Are you sure? It's no problem for us to swing by. You said he was on Madison around 96th Street, right?"

"Yes, but."

Issy fell silent and looked away. House wondered why she didn't want to go see him after she had mentioned wanting to thank him, but decided not to push the issue at the moment.

"I still want to hit FAO Schwarz and how do you feel about going to the Met?"

Her face brightened again: "Oh, yes, that sounds great. I would like to go see the mummies again."

He picked up her hand and brought it to his lips. "Then that's what we'll do."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

FAO Schwarz was a mere half block walk from the hotel. House caught Issy eyeing the stuffed animals as they headed towards the escalator and made a mental note to stroll slowly through that area on their way out. After playing with some electronic games and remote-controlled cars, they headed over to the huge candy department and satisfied their sweet tooth. As they walked through the jungle of stuffed animals on their way out, House watched Issy closely. The stuffed dogs with the floppy ears seemed to catch her eye and when he commented on that, she brushed it off. "They're cute, but you know, they're for little kids."

He pointed out: "You still have one."

Her face colored. "Well, that's just a silly sentimental thing on my part."

She tried to steer him out of the store, but he stopped her. "If you were a little kid, which one would you want?"

Issy looked down at her feet. "Greg."

"What? It's just a hypothetical question."

She glanced from side to side and seemed embarrassed. Finally she whispered: "The dog."

"Which dog?"

Issy pointed to a brown floppy-eared dog with a large black nose. The sign in front of the stack of canines advertised him as Patrick the Pup, an FAO exclusive toy. He made a mental note and then to Issy's relief, they headed out of the store.

They got into a taxi and he directed the driver to the Metropolitan Museum. As they rode up Madison Avenue, House asked: "Why do you like dogs so much?"

Issy smiled shyly and said: "They're friendly and they're protective. They're fun to play with and good company. They don't care who you are or what you've done. If you love them, they love you back."

That was it. Unlike a person, a dog wouldn't care if Issy had been a whore. He wouldn't sit in judgment on her. As long as Issy loved the dog and cared for him, the dog would provide her with unconditional love, something that she apparently craved.

He tenderly touched her cheek. "What kind of dog do you want to get?"

"I like big dogs, like Labs. That seems to be what I always end up drawing. But I think when the time comes, I'll go to a shelter and adopt an unwanted dog."

He couldn't help but smile; that seemed exactly like what she would do.

"Did you have a dog when you were a kid?"

She shook her head: "No, but sometimes I would play with the neighbor's Lab. Her name was Velvet and she liked to chase tennis balls and Frisbees. She'd even chase snowballs and then would get so confused when they broke apart in her mouth. That was funny to watch. When I was eight, she had puppies and Daddy said maybe we would get one of her puppies, but."

House waited for her to go on and when she didn't, he finally asked: "But?"

Her answer was a whisper. "Daddy left."

Issy turned her head and pretended to find something interesting to stare at out of the cab's window while House shook his head in disbelief. From Issy's accounts, John Walker seemed like a loving dad, and yet he disappeared right after promising his only child a puppy. Something didn't add up and it disturbed House that he couldn't solve this puzzle.

The cab pulled to the curb and the cabbie announced: "Here ya go. That'll be $7.50."

House tossed a ten-dollar bill at him and didn't wait for change. After paying the museum admission fee, they headed right for the Egyptian wing. Suddenly Issy froze.

House glanced at her; she actually looked frightened. "What's the matter, baby?"

Her voice quivered a bit as she said: "See that guard over there on the right? That's the guy that used to throw me out."

House said firmly: "He's not throwing you out today. We paid our money and have every right to be here. Chin up. Act like you belong here because you do."

Issy did as he requested, but clutched his hand tightly until they had passed the guard. A sigh of relief passed her lips and she relaxed her grip. They strolled the galleries, enjoying the mummies, statues and other artifacts of ancient Egypt while House shared his extensive knowledge of Egyptology with Issy. Finally they walked into the room that housed the Temple of Dendur. It was one of the largest exhibits owned by the museum, measuring a length of 82 feet from the front gate to the rear of the temple.

The carvings on the walls fascinated Issy. "I can't believe that you actually got to see places like this when you were in Egypt. That is just so cool."

"You know, you could take a trip one day and go see them yourself."

Issy nodded: "I'd like to, but Paris first, then Egypt."

House chuckled: "Your priorities are duly noted."

After finishing with the Egyptian gallery, they headed up to the second floor to the section that housed the European paintings. House was not surprised that Issy was quite taken with the French artists, but she also seemed to like the Dutch and Flemish painters too.

As they stared at _'Cypresses'_ by Van Gogh, House mentioned: "Did you know that there is a Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam?"

Issy nodded: "Oh, yes, and the Rijksmuseum is supposed to be spectacular too. I'd love to go to Amsterdam in the spring for tulip season and then see all the museums too."

"It's pretty easy to travel to Amsterdam from Paris on the train. It's not that long a trip."

"That sounds like fun. I'd love to do that."

As much as House hated to travel these days, there was a part of him that wanted to take her to those places and share in her delight at seeing these long-desired sights. He enjoyed her child-like sense of wonder, which he found to be almost infectious. But he knew better than to try to plan a future with her. He couldn't see her hanging around with him after their deal was over.

"You'll make decent money as a nurse. You'll be able to afford to do it."

"I hope so, but buying a home is my first priority. It'd be nice to be able to afford a house and do some traveling, but I don't know if I can do both."

"Sure you can. With your budgeting and coupon-clipping skills, you will be able to save the money in no time."

Issy leaned her head against his arm. "I wish I had your confidence."

House looked down at her for a moment and then slipped his arm around her shoulders. "You can do it. I know you can. You've come this far and you'll go much further."

He kissed the top of her head and said softly: "I'm very proud of you."

Issy's jaw dropped at his words. She turned and looked directly into his eyes; she could see nothing but sincerity. _Did he really mean it? Was he_ _really proud of her?_ Her lower lip started to tremble and she bit it to make it stop. Issy felt completely overwhelmed with emotion and didn't know how to handle it. She felt as though she would do anything for this man; if he wanted her to drop to her knees in the middle of the museum and blow him in front of everyone, she'd do it.

She swallowed hard. "T-thank you. T-that was v-very n-nice of you to s-say. I'll give you a r-really n-nice t-thank you l-later."

House touched her cheek. Jesus, those psychology texts must be right. Again, Issy was offering him sex as a token of appreciation for the small things he had said or done for her. Did she really think that her body was all she had to offer him?

He kissed her lips very gently. "I meant everything I said and you don't owe me any thanks. Come on, let's go down the hall and see the musical instruments before my leg gives out."

Issy let him guide her two rooms down to where the museum's collection of musical instruments was housed. Despite his words, she swore to thank him properly later on that night.

The museum had a fascinating collection of guitars and other stringed instruments. The pianos and harpsichords were also a special passion for House and he read the information cards with great interest.

"Check this out, Issy. This is called a double virginal harpsichord. It has two keyboards and the smaller one is tuned an octave higher than the bigger one. It was built in Antwerp in 1581 and was found near Cuzco, Peru before being brought here.

"Wow. There must be a fascinating story behind that journey."

House nodded: "I wonder what it sounds like. Man, I'd love to be able to tickle those ivories."

"The painting on the lid is amazing. What a work of art."

"Yeah, it's really something."

They spent an hour or so in that room before heading out. Concerned about his leg, Issy gently inquired if House wanted to return to the hotel.

"Not yet. Let's go around back and see Cleopatra's Needle."

Issy was thrilled; she had wanted to go see the statue but had been hesitant to suggest it since House had been walking for so long. They strolled slowly past the 'Group of Bears' statue, and the playground before arriving at 'The Obelisk', commonly known as 'Cleopatra's Needle'. During her residence in New York, Issy had been fascinated by this monument and had spent hours gazing at the hieroglyphs. Naturally, House knew the history behind the statue and, as they rested on a park bench, he spun a fascinating tale of how the monument had been obtained by the Cairo General Consul, Judge Elbert E. Farman, back in 1877 and finally brought to New York in 1880.

"It's 69 feet tall and weighs 219 tons. It must have been amazing to watch them move and erect something that size back in 1880, doncha think? At the time it was moved to New York, it was estimated to be 3746 years old, built by Thutmose III who was known as the Napoleon of Ancient Egypt due to his many conquests. Did you know that no two sides of the obelisk are equal in width? If it were cut through in sections, you would see that it is a trapezoid."

Issy was impressed, as usual, by the House's vast knowledge of the subject. She could listen to him talk all day. Finally, he announced that he wanted a nap before dinner, so they headed back to 5th Avenue and caught a cab back to the hotel.

They had dinner reservations at 8PM so House set the alarm on his watch for 7PM. They stripped off and climbed under the covers; Issy immediately reached for his cock.

He grabbed her hand to stop her movements. "That's nice, baby, but I just want a nap right now."

She snuggled into his embrace: "OK, as long as I can play with you later."

He mumbled: "Like you have to ask."

Kissing the top of her head, House rested his cheek against her hair and closed his eyes. His breathing evened out and Issy figured that he had fallen asleep. She wasn't very sleepy at the moment, but still relished being in his arms. She let out a soft, contented sigh and gently toyed with his chest hairs.

This had been the nicest weekend that she had ever had. Greg was treating her like a real girlfriend and although she knew it was a temporary situation, she was nevertheless thrilled. He was being so nice to her. He'd said he was _proud of her_, words that still sent a warm rush of emotions coursing through her body. Maybe he'd come to her nursing school graduation; it would be so cool to have someone in the audience cheering when her name was called.

She could never pay him back for everything that he had done for her, but at least she could make him happy for as long as she was allowed to stay with him. Greg let out a gentle snore and Issy smiled. It was good that he was napping; after dinner tonight, she planned on making him a very happy man.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Dinner at Ben Benson's steakhouse was fabulous. The portions were huge and there was no way that Issy could eat her entire meal of petite Filet Mignon and mashed potatoes with caramelized onions. Even House had not been able to finish the eighteen-ounce sirloin and cottage fries that he had ordered. Issy insisted on a doggy bag, complete with plastic utensils, and when the waiter hurried off to comply with her request, House inquired: "Issy, when are you thinking we are going to eat the leftovers? We're leaving tomorrow after breakfast. You're not planning on schlepping this food back to Princeton, are you?"

"Oh, no, that would be silly. I just don't want the food to go to waste."

Still puzzled, he asked: "Then what are we going to do with it?"

She waved her hand at him: "You'll see."

They had taken a cab to the restaurant, but House wanted to stroll back to the hotel. As they walked slowly up 6th Avenue, Issy held the plastic bag containing the remnants of their dinner in her left hand while holding onto House with her right. When they reached Central Park South, House turned to the right towards the hotel, but Issy stopped in her tracks.

She said to him: "Wait here for a moment."

Before House could reply, the light changed, granting permission to cross Central Park South and Issy trotted into the street.

He called after her: "What are you doing?"

Issy did not reply or turn around; she continued across the street and started walking into the park. House was furious. What the hell was she thinking, going into the park by herself after dark? The light had already changed; traffic was moving again and there was no way that he could catch up to her, even if he had two good legs. He angrily punched the crosswalk button over and over again, urging the light to change, while he kept his eye on her.

She stopped only a few feet into the park, right next to a bench. She set the bag down on the bench and hurriedly walked back to the street. Obviously, she was on her way back so House's anger lessened, but still he wondered what the hell she had been doing.

Just as the light changed and Issy started crossing the street, he got his answer. A homeless man crept out of the shadows, glanced furtively around and snatched the bag of food. He was out of sight by the time Issy arrived back on the south side of the street.

"Is it gone yet?"

House nodded: "Yes. How did you know?"

She gave him a sad look. "Experience."

He took her hand and they silently walked towards the Plaza. After a moment, House said: "That's why you insisted on the utensils, so whoever got the food didn't have to pick it up and eat it with dirty hands."

"Eating with a knife and fork, even plastic ones, makes you feel more human."

He squeezed her hand, unable to think of anything else to say. They walked in silence the rest of the way to the hotel. Just as they started up the hotel steps, Issy asked: "You're not mad at me for doing that, are you? The restaurant would have just thrown the food out."

House shook his head: "No. I was concerned when you ran into the park by yourself, but that's all. I'm not mad."

Issy breathed an audible sigh of relief. "OK, good."

The large box on the coffee table caught Issy's eye as soon as she walked into their hotel room.

"What's that?"

House shrugged in a casual manner: "Don't know. Why don't you check it out?"

Issy approached it cautiously. The box was wrapped in red and white striped paper, reminding her of a candy cane and it had a big red bow on top. There was a card on top of the box that read: _'Isabelle Walker, room 1205, Plaza Hotel'._

"Hey, it's addressed to me."

House sank onto the couch with an amused look on his face: "Well, you'd better open it then."

Issy paused with her fingers on the bow. "You know what this is?"

"Looks like a gift. Open it already."

She wondered for a brief moment what it could possibly be and then to House's great amusement, she ripped off the paper. When she lifted the lid and saw the contents, she let out a loud gasp.

She stared at the contents for a moment and then said in a hushed tone: "I can't believe you did this."

House affected an innocent tone: "Moi? What did I do?"

Issy looked up at him, a stunned look on her face. "You didn't have to do this, on top of everything else."

House casually stretched his arm across the back of the couch. "Who says I did anything?"

Issy tilted her head and smirked: "Right. Who else would get me something like this?"

She reached into the box and pulled out her gift. It was Patrick the Pup, the stuffed toy that Issy had pointed out when they had been in FAO Schwarz.

House feigned surprise: "Hey, it's that dog you said you liked."

His eyes narrowed: "Who sent you that? Is there a card? Am I going to have to use my cane on some jerk whose trying to put the moves on my girl?"

Issy hugged the dog to her chest. "There's no card, but I can guarantee that no one else is putting the moves on your girl."

House beckoned her with a wave of his fingers. When Issy was standing next to him, he pulled her down on his good leg. He wrapped his arms around her, kissed her ear and whispered: "You like him?"

Issy nodded. "He's very nice, so soft and cuddly. But it's not my birthday or Christmas or anything."

He tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear: "I know. I just wanted you to have him because you liked him."

Blinking back tears, Issy whispered: "You've given me so much already. I mean there were all those Christmas presents and then the concert, the restaurants, staying in this magnificent hotel and now the dog. You didn't have to do all of this."

"I didn't do it because I _had_ to. I did it because I wanted to."

Issy's mind spun. Why would he want to give her all these nice things?

She'd heard stories about Sugar Daddies who gave their mistresses all kinds of nice presents, including cars and apartments. Was this just a little sample of that? Or was he playing out this whole 'girlfriend' fantasy to the hilt? That must be it. It was just part of the fantasy role-playing for him. Men take their girlfriends on romantic weekends and buy them silly little presents like stuffed animals. She just had to play along. After all, that's what he was paying her to do.

She put on a coy pout. "Well, you know what I want? I want to thank you properly for giving me the best week of my life. There's a big soft bed in the other room and there's some special lingerie that I haven't modeled for you yet."

House didn't want Issy to feel like she owed him anything for such a small present, but a certain part of his anatomy perked up at the word 'lingerie'.

She ran her finger across his lips and whispered: "How about you pour us a drink and I'll slip into a little something that you'll want to take off of me?"

House's tongue darted out and licked her finger. "Would there be lace on that little something that you just mentioned?"

Issy giggled: "Yes, I believe there is some lace. You like _'Little Lace_ _Panties'_, don't you?"

He gave her ass a light smack. "Naughty girl. You were checking out the porn titles, weren't you?"

"Hmmm, somehow, I thought that might be one that you would like."

He chuckled: "Scotch or bourbon?"

She replied in a sultry tone: "You know what I like."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "And you know what I like too."

She caressed his cheek with her thumb. "Why don't you pour us a drink and start up the movie? I'll join you in five minutes."

He covered her hand with his and swiftly kissed her palm. "Make it four."


	43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43

House and Issy spent New Year's Eve at home. House was not into dealing with big crowds and inflated prices just to usher in the New Year. Issy, naturally, agreed especially since they had just spent a lovely weekend in New York City. They spent a quiet evening at home with Chinese food delivery for dinner and a Dr. Who marathon. Issy had never seen the show before, but once House explained a few of the essential details to her, she quickly got into it. At five minutes to midnight, he switched the TV over to the station showing Times Square and they watched the ball drop, welcoming in 2008 with a big kiss.

While House went back to work on January 7th, Issy still had another week off. She spent the time giving the apartment a really good cleaning and working on her required assignments. She finished two of the three required papers by the end of the week and had made a good start on the third one. House enjoyed waking up next to her warm body every morning and it was with great reluctance that he headed out to work every day.

As the week wound to a close, Issy debated once again about calling Marcy. Now that she knew that Mancini had messed her up, Issy was concerned for her friend and yet still afraid that if she called, it might stir up troubles for her and Greg again. After hashing it over in her mind for two days, she decided not to call, fearing it was too risky. Even though she was worried about her friend, it was probably wiser to just close that chapter of her life completely. If all went well, she'd graduate with her degree in less than six months and she'd never have to be involved with that type of lifestyle again. The cuts on her breasts had healed well, but the thin scars were still rather noticeable. Issy had become very self-conscious about wearing low-cut tops and would only do so when she and Greg were alone. She continued to apply the Mederma cream and hope that the scars would continue to fade.

On Saturday, they made the trip up to East Rutherford for the Meadowlands Motorcycle Expo. It was way too cold to take the bike, much to House's regret, but they dressed for the occasion, with jeans, boots and leather jackets. House enjoyed checking out all the bikes. The bikini-clad models that were straddling the bikes weren't half bad either, but they couldn't hold a candle to the woman on his arm. Apparently a lot of other guys thought so too, judging from the looks that were thrown her way. He kept a tight grip on his woman as they slowly wandered around the arena.

The vendors were out in full force, selling everything from motorcycle parts to helmets and clothes. House stopped in front of one of the vendors that sold all types of leather goods.

Pointing to an item hanging on the wall behind the stand, House asked: "What do you think of that?"

Issy colored a most becoming shade of pink as she stared at the leather corset. "Wow. That's really, hmmm."

"Sexy, right? Damn, I wish we had a garage. I'd love to see you straddling my bike dressed in that. That would be so unbelievably hot."

Issy suppressed a giggle; Greg really did like it when she dressed up for him. In a seductive tone, she replied: "Well, when the weather is warmer, we could take the bike to a secluded park and I could pose on it for you. In the meantime, I could straddle your other engine while wearing it."

A slow grin crossed his face. "I like the way you think."

The black leather corset had a lace-up back and detail lacing on the hips. It was designed to just barely cover the nipples and had a zip-up front for easy removal. A tiny leather G-string came with it. The seller found Issy's size and rung up the purchase. House had some slight difficulty walking out to the car, as he could not stop picturing a leather-clad Issy in his mind.

When she entered the bedroom later that evening, clad in the corset, G-string, black thigh-high stockings and four-inch heels, House let out a long low whistle. Mt. Gregory was standing at full salute and aching for some attention, which Issy gladly gave him. Within a short time, the corset was partially unzipped, exposing her luscious melons, and the G-string was tossed to the side. Issy straddled Greg's engine for a long, lovely ride.

Afterwards, he unzipped the corset and helped her take it off. The boning was a bit constrictive and Issy didn't think she could sleep with it on. Clad only in her thigh-high stockings, Issy was a vision of loveliness and House couldn't stop staring at her.

"Damn, you're sexy. I wish I were 25 again, so that I could fuck you more than once a night."

Issy gave him a sultry smile and purred: "You don't have to be 25. I've seen you rise to the occasion more than once. Maybe I can help you with that?"

As her hand closed around his shaft, House groaned: "Please do."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy only had two weeks left on the oncology floor and while she had learned a lot, she was eager to move on to her next rotation. When her class met in the lecture hall on Monday afternoon, the new assignments were announced. Issy had to suppress a groan; instead of being sent to one of her requested areas, she was being sent to the Ortho floor. Could it get more boring than dealing with broken limbs and post-surgical patients all the time? Oh well, she'd just have to make the best of it, learn what she could and hope her last assignment would be in one of her desired areas.

When she told House the news that evening over dinner, he commiserated with her. "That sucks, babe. I know you were looking forward to getting into the ER or ICU."

Issy shrugged: "Well, as the great philosopher Jagger once said, you can't always get what you want. I'll make the best of it."

House had to chuckle at her use of the Jagger quote. He could sense her disappointment, but could see that she was taking it in stride and he admired her for that. Suddenly it hit him that disappointment was the norm for Issy and he hoped it wouldn't be like that for the rest of her life. She had worked hard and deserved the few things in life that she desired. The urge to comfort her welled up in him, but he couldn't find the right words to express it.

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "Maybe you can find someone on the Ortho floor who has a cooler cane than mine and swipe it for me."

Issy stroked his cheek. "A cooler cane than the flame cane? Doubtful but I'll keep my eyes open."

Softly, he said: "That's my girl."

Emotions welled up in Issy and threatened to leak out via her tear ducts. When he said things like that, she could almost imagine that she was really his girlfriend, that this wasn't just a business arrangement that would be ending in less than five months, but that these wonderful feelings were real and were reciprocated by him.

House watched the emotions flicker across her face and wondered what she was thinking. He tilted his head and looked into her eyes. "You are my girl, aren't you?"

Stuffing her emotions down, Issy nodded as she wrapped her arms around his neck. With her lips mere millimeters away from his, she whispered: "Oh, yes. I'm your girl."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson's voice hit his upper octave range. _"You don't have any plans?_ It's the most romantic day of the year and you haven't made plans with your girlfriend? Have you at least bought her a gift?"

House inwardly groaned. He had been out of a relationship for so many years that stupid holidays like Valentine's Day slipped right under his radar. Apparently he must have fast-forwarded through all the commercials for jewelry and flowers for the approaching Hallmark-driven holiday, but how had he failed to notice the red hearts decorating the gift shop, which Wilson so kindly pointed out on their way to lunch?

He muttered to Wilson: "I don't know. I just forgot about it."

"Well, it's still a week away, but you better get a move on if you want to make dinner plans. Even though the fourteenth is a Thursday night, all the good places will get booked up fast."

House grimaced: "Maybe we'll just stay home."

Wilson gave him his patented 'are-you-insane' look. "Stay home? What, you're gonna make her cook? Or get pizza delivered? House, it's your first Valentine's Day together. You should do something big."

"I'll take it under advisement, but for now, can we just have lunch?"

Wilson nodded and the two men entered the cafeteria. House should have gone with his first instinct and bailed on lunch as he ended up listening to Wilson's tales of Valentine's Days past while he tried to eat his Reuben as quickly as possible. Finally he managed to escape and headed off to his office.

He settled at his desk and let out a sigh. Another 'romantic' holiday where society declared that you should _spend money_ to show your special someone that you loved them. House had gotten away with it for New Year's but that was only because he had taken Issy to New York City the previous weekend. He hated that he was expected to publicly demonstrate affection on certain days of the year, but if he wanted to keep the 'girlfriend' illusion going, he needed to put on a show for yet another holiday. There was just one more month left to the bet and then the winnings would be his.

As his computer booted up, he tossed ideas around in his mind. He knew that Issy would be thrilled with anything that he did, she was damn easy that way, but what would she _like?_ House had to assume that she had never celebrated Valentine's Day before and he suddenly felt the need to show her a romantic night.

Twenty minutes later and he was almost done. He had managed to reserve a table at Gennaro's for dinner. Chocolate dipped strawberries were ordered for a special late night dessert and would be delivered the day before. He'd buy some flowers at the gift shop on the fourteenth, but what to do for an actual gift?

Then he remembered Wilson's advice from Christmas. A watch would be perfect; it was like jewelry and yet not quite. An expensive watch would impress Wilson and Issy could certainly use a replacement for that cheap dime store watch that she owned. He started surfing on-line to get some ideas.

After jotting down the brands and model numbers of a few that he liked, he planned a trip to the local jeweler's after work. Once that was out of the way, he could declare Valentine's Day planned.

Leaning back in his chair, House pondered over whether to tell Issy of the upcoming events. If she hadn't thought of the holiday, she might be embarrassed to discover that he had gotten her a gift and she had nothing for him. He didn't want to put her on the spot, but the desire to surprise her overwhelmed him. So he decided not to say anything until the big day.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The surprise almost lasted the entire week. The chocolate-covered strawberries arrived on Wednesday before House got home and Issy accepted the delivery. Naturally, when House got home, Issy questioned him about the box.

"It said to refrigerate the box upon arrival, so of course, I did that, but what is it, Greg?"

"Hmm. It's a surprise for tomorrow."

Issy frowned: "Tomorrow? What's tomorrow?"

"Oh, tomorrow is one of those days when you eat special food."

Issy puzzled over that for a moment. "Tomorrow's Thursday. Today's the thirteenth, so tomorrow's."

Suddenly she gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. "Tomorrow's Valentine's Day! I completely forgot. Oh, you must think I'm such an idiot. And you, you got something special for us to eat?"

He shrugged: "I thought I'd get home in time to intercept the delivery. I wanted to surprise you."

"Oh, my god, I haven't done a thing! What will Wilson think of me that I forgot Valentine's Day?"

_Damn it._ This was just what he didn't want, her stressing out about this stupid holiday. "Relax. You're a student; you're low on cash."

"Well that is the truth, but it's no excuse. I'll think of something."

House frowned; he had left the usual envelope on the nightstand two days ago. Had she blown through the cash already? That seemed so unlike her.

"Iss, if you need money."

She cut him off before he could finish the sentence. "No, you pay me enough. It's just that I finished paying my tuition _and_ I paid my car insurance this week, so I'm busted."

He reached for his wallet: "I'll give you an advance."

Issy shook her head. "Thank you, but no. That's very generous of you, but I'll come up with something."

House admired her fortitude, but also wondered what kind of gift she was going to dream up that required no cash. Fortunately he was only going to have to wonder until tomorrow.

After dinner and dishes, Issy scurried into the bedroom. The closed door indicated to House that she wanted to be left alone, so he let her be. He watched TV until he heard the bedroom door open, and then he turned everything off and limped down the hall. A quick glance around the bedroom gave him no indication as to what she had been doing for the last two hours. He decided to deal with the surprise tomorrow. After brushing their teeth, they snuggled in each other's arms until they drifted off to sleep.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House wanted something different from the ordinary red rose bouquet so commonly given on Valentine's Day, so he selected a crystal vase containing twelve red tulips and twelve purple irises. The flowers were at the peak of perfection and nicely colorful. Even Wilson approved of his selection.

As House whipped out his American Express to pay, Wilson asked: "What about a card?"

"No need. She'll know who they're from when I hand them to her."

A voice behind them asked: "Hand them to whom?"

House groaned; Cuddy did _not_ just sneak up behind them and catch him buying flowers on the most romantic day of the year.

Yet there she was, standing right behind him with her hands on her hips. "And just who are you buying flowers for on Valentine's Day, Dr. House?"

He smirked: "Myself. I need the love."

"Ri-ght. Funny, I don't peg you as a tulip kind of guy though; I see you as more of a prickly pear cactus type."

"Even a cactus needs love."

House grabbed the vase and prepared to leave, but the cashier said: "Wait, Dr House. Don't forget the present. It's all wrapped; I just need to put on a small bow and it's ready to go."

Cuddy laughed: "Flowers and a gift? Really needing some love, huh? What, your hookers not doing it for you anymore?"

As the cashier handed House the wrapped box, she said in a stern tone: "It's not for a _hooker_, Dr. Cuddy. It's for his girlfriend."

Cuddy sputtered: "_You_ have a _girlfriend?"_

Through clenched teeth, House hissed: "Roberta, you weren't supposed to squeal on me."

"I'm sorry Dr House, but I didn't like what Dr. Cuddy said about you being involved with _hookers._ You wouldn't do a thing like that."

_Oh, if only you knew._

House grabbed the box from Roberta and shoved it in his pocket. "Would you look at the time? I have to go. They won't hold dinner reservations for one on Valentine's Day very long."

He grabbed the vase in his left hand and limped as fast as he could out of the gift shop. Wilson chuckled and started to follow him, but before he could reach the door, a hand reached out and grabbed his jacket sleeve. He looked over his shoulder to find a very curious Cuddy.

"Spill it. Who the hell is this _girlfriend_?"

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Cuddy's mind spun as she walked back down to her office. According to Wilson, House had been living with a 25-year-old nursing student for the past five months. It was hard to believe that House had kept this tidbit of news secret for that length of time. She would have thought that he would have announced it from the balcony for the entire hospital to hear. He certainly had been slick about keeping the secret; he had still been talking about spending time with hookers just a few weeks ago.

And what did this young hottie see in him? Was she one of the many nursing students that chose the profession merely to find a doctor to wed? Not that House wasn't attractive in his own scruffy way, but his gruff demeanor and caustic tongue made most people run in the opposite direction. How had this girl managed to wiggle her way into his home and his heart?

As soon as she entered her office, Cuddy pulled out the file on the current nursing students and searched for the folder labeled 'Isabelle Walker'. Cuddy's eyes widened when she saw the photo; she was the girl that House had been so rude to on Orientation Day. How had this girl gone from being completely mortified by House's behavior to moving in with him?

Cuddy took the file back to her desk and read through it. Issy was 25, a little older than the typical nursing student. Her A.A. degree was from Trenton Community College, but her grades were decent. Cuddy doubted that her intellect was anywhere near House's, but a glance at Issy's I.Q. scores told a different story. Issy's I.Q. was 130, very close to the Genius category. What the hell was she doing attending community college and going to nursing school? She could have easily been accepted to Princeton or another elite university and well on her way to becoming a doctor, a lawyer or other professional.

There must be a reason for that. Cuddy poured over the pages again and saw that for 'High School Attended', Issy had filled in that blank with 'GED' and the date it had been obtained. Cuddy did the math and realized that Issy had been nineteen when she had received her GED. Obviously she had dropped out of high school, but with her brains, why would she have done that?

Cuddy then noticed that the spot for 'emergency contact' had been left blank. She slumped back in her chair. Was it possible that the girl had no family? Is that why she dropped out of high school? What had happened to her and how had she managed to get her life back together to further her education?

A smile crept across her face. Intelligent, beautiful and mysterious. Cuddy could definitely understand what House saw in this girl. She was actually happy for him; it was about time that he'd moved on from Stacy and found someone new.

As she closed the file and stuck it back in the cabinet, Cuddy decided that she was looking forward to meeting the young lady that seemed to have stolen her grumpy genius' heart. Her current assignment was on the Ortho floor and Cuddy was positive that they needed a visit from the Dean of Medicine in the very near future.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

They were given a nice intimate corner at Gennaro's. Over appetizers of fried calamari and Caprese salad, Issy gushed: "Greg, this is such a nice place. And the food is delicious. Now that you've turned me on to fried calamari, I can't get enough of it."

He chuckled as he dipped another fried ring into the marinara sauce. "I'm glad you like it, babe. It's actually quite nice to be with a woman who likes to eat as much as I do and isn't constantly worried about her _diet_."

He extended his fork to Issy and she accepted his offering of the sauce-coated ring. She closed her eyes as she chewed and had such a look of ecstatic delight on her face that House felt his cock twitch in anticipation of what he hoped would transpire later on that evening.

Issy moaned: "Oh, that's so good. I do love to eat and I guess I'm lucky that running keeps me trim, so I don't have to worry about calories too much."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her: "There are other ways to burn off calories too."

She gave him a smile. "Yes, there are. I like dancing too. It's fun and you can burn off a lot of calories that way."

He gave her a quizzical look, as he'd only heard her mention that activity in relation to her former occupation, certainly not as a hobby. Like running, it was something that he could no longer do and that wasn't pleasant to think about. His tone grew gruff. "Dancing? Really? Too bad you're hooked up with a gimp."

Issy replied in a sultry tone. "What are you taking about? You're the best dancer I've ever known. There's no one who can do the horizontal disco better than you can."

His mood immediately improved. "Oh, yeah?"

She smiled: "Gold medal, all the way."

The left side of his mouth turned up. "You do a mean mattress mambo yourself, babe."

There it was, that smile, that look in her eyes that promised hot sex later. He was amazed that at times he could read her so well, and at others, he didn't have the foggiest idea what she was thinking.

He reached across the table and took her hand. As he rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand, he found himself hoping that she would really like the watch. She had practically swooned over the flowers, pleased that he had remembered that tulips were her favorite. House had not remembered that at all, but he played along as if he had pulled that out of his hat. After ruminating over it for a while, he did remember her mentioning a desire to go to Holland for tulip season. It hadn't been a conscious memory, but he had certainly scored points with the flowers.

The waiter came with their main courses. Issy was getting bolder with trying new things and tonight she had ordered the pollo di bosco while House got the porkloin pizzaiola. Both dishes were expertly prepared and quite delicious. As always, Issy let House swipe a few bites of her food, and tonight he returned the favor by feeding her a couple of mouthfuls of his dish.

They decided to skip dessert as they had the strawberries waiting at home. The night wasn't too cold as they strolled slowly to the car, arm-in-arm. House walked her to the passenger side and unlocked the door. Before he opened it, he pulled Issy into his arms and gave her a passionate kiss. She returned it with equal fervor and his body quivered when he felt her hands cup his face. He wanted her, right now, and it was all he could do to convince Mt. Gregory to have some patience until they got home.

Once they were home, he pulled the small box that Roberta had gift-wrapped out of his pocket and presented it to Issy. Before she had even opened it, she blushed beautifully and thanked him.

He rolled his eyes. "Open it first and _then_ thank me."

She smirked: "I will and I know just _how_ you like to be thanked."

House chuckled and watched as she ripped the paper off. Issy opened the small box and let out a loud gasp. "Oomigod, this is beautiful. I can't believe you got me something _so_ nice. This is _fabulous_."

He had bought her an Accutron ladies diamond stainless steel watch. Twelve small diamonds were set into the bezel surrounding a white dial face. It was a dressy style yet still practical enough for work.

Issy tore off her old watch and tossed it on the coffee table, immediately replacing it with the new watch. She held her arm out and took a good look at it, a huge smile plastered across her face.

"This is beautiful, just beautiful. Thank you so much."

She launched herself at him, landing on his good leg and smothered his face with kisses. House laughed at her delight and kissed her back. It took a few minutes but she finally settled down, seemingly content to snuggle on his lap. House wasn't complaining; these moments were some of the best of his days lately. There was a certain comfort in these quiet moments that he'd had no idea had been missing from his life until Issy had moved in.

Finally she stirred. "OK, are you ready for your present now? I gotta warn you; it's just a little thing, not anywhere _close_ to being as nice as this watch."

In a gentle tone, he said: "Bring it on, baby."

"Be right back."

House waited patiently while Issy trotted to the bedroom and back. Shyly, she handed him a flat cardboard box and stood next to him while he opened it. House was stunned by the contents; Issy had drawn him a picture. It depicted him at his piano, his back to the viewer, and his face in profile. It was an excellent likeness. Lounging across the top of his piano in the barest of bikinis was a very busty blonde, staring at him with desire in her eyes.

He looked up at her: "Jenna Jameson?"

Issy looked pleased. "Oh, goodie, you recognized her. I was hoping I'd get her face right. Do you like it?"

What man wouldn't like Jenna staring at him as if he were the best thing since sliced bread? "It's great. Issy, I've never seen you draw anything other than houses before. This is spectacular. You draw so well."

Issy blushed and sank into a corner of the couch, clearly uncomfortable with the praise that he was lavishing on her.

Softly she said: "I didn't know what to get you, and I didn't have any money anyway. And I know you like her; you have a whole bunch of her videos, so I thought that you might like a picture. It's kinda stupid, I mean, it's not a real present. You don't have to tell Wilson about it. Just tell him I got you something too sexy to mention."

"I'm not going to _tell_ him about it. I'm going to _show_ it to him and rub it in his face how talented my girlfriend is. Damn, babe, you can really draw. It's nice to see you branching out and drawing more than just houses."

He leaned back against the couch, holding the picture at arm's length. "You know, there is just one little thing that would have made this picture perfect."

Issy asked eagerly: "What? Is there something I should fix?"

He carefully set the drawing down on the coffee table and turned to her. "It would be perfect if it were a drawing of _you_ on the piano instead of Jenna. You are much lovelier than she could ever be."

Shocked by his compliment, Issy's mouth formed a perfect 'O' and she found herself at a loss for words.

Pleased at the effect his words had on her, House leaned forward and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. "You're beautiful, so beautiful."

House kissed her again, and then stood up and walked over to the stereo. Issy was completely flustered by his compliments; her fingers flew to her mouth that was still tingling after his kiss.

_He liked the drawing! He didn't think it was stupid. And he thinks I'm more beautiful than Jenna Jameson? That's crazy but so sweet of him to say so._

After turning on the CD player and selecting some mood music, House returned to the couch and held out his hand.

"I can't really dance, but may I have the honor of swaying with you to a song?"

Issy nodded, completely at a loss for words. She had never dreamed that someone would be so romantic with her on Valentine's Day and yet here was Greg, even with his bad leg, wanting to _dance_ with her. It was just amazing. Somehow, she managed to stand and he took her into his arms.

And to make the night even more perfect, Greg had selected the most absolutely perfect song. Issy sighed when she heard the opening bars of Eric Clapton's _'Wonderful Tonight'_ and nuzzled her face into his shoulder.

House heard her sigh and held her tighter. He found that shifting his weight was more difficult than he realized it would be, so the 'swaying' actually amounted to very gentle rocking. As long as he was holding Issy in his arms, he didn't mind and her contented sighs told him that she didn't mind either.

Issy wanted this moment to last forever. She wanted the song to never end, but as Jackson Browne sang, 'all good things gotta come to an end', and this moment was no exception to the rule.

The song ended and the couple looked at each other. Emotions danced between them but no words were spoken. Issy reached up and touched his cheek; he gave her a small smile in return.

After a long moment, Issy said: "I wanna make love to you."

House nodded: "I want that too."

He took her by the hand and led her down the hall to the bedroom.

Their lovemaking was slow and tender. Issy wanted to show him with her body the things that she couldn't verbally express to him. She touched and kissed him as lovingly as possible. House was equally gentle and loving in return. When he finally slid inside of her, she gasped audibly at the sensation, feeling a sense of completeness at being joined with Greg in this manner. Their eyes were locked on each other as their bodies thrust together in a well-practiced rhythm. After five months together, House knew Issy's body and what it took to drive her over the edge. When he felt himself about to peak, he shifted his body just slightly, putting more pressure on her most sensitive spot and they fell over the edge together.

Afterwards they had dessert in bed. They laughed and caressed as they fed each other the chocolate covered strawberries. House discovered naughty things to do with the cold strawberries that made Issy squeal, but added an extra taste sensation to the delicious snack. They fell asleep in each other's arms, not caring about the bits of chocolate and smears of strawberry juice on their bodies, but silently delighting in the best Valentine's Day either one of them had ever had.


	44. Chapter 44

**A big Thank You to Leesa1214 for my ship name HISSY! This chapter's for you. **

**Chapter 44 **

House found himself becoming more anxious as March 7th loomed closer. Once the bet was over, Issy's obligation to him was also finished and that meant that she could leave at any time. Not that he thought that she would leave, but the idea that she _could _leave disturbed him. He had come to the realization that he didn't want her to leave. Ever. He enjoyed her company more that he ever could have imagined, and the thought of life without her was pure misery. House felt fairly secure that she would stay until her graduation in June, but what would happen after that? Would she just pack up and go or would she wait for him to ask her to leave? How could he tell her that he wanted her to stay? She thought this was just a business arrangement. Would she laugh in his face that an old gimp like him wanted to keep a young hottie like her around or would she take him up on the offer? There were times when House really thought that she enjoyed his company as much as he enjoyed hers. Maybe she would stay; he would have to figure out a way to tell her what he wanted before graduation day arrived.

Fortunately Cuddy found him a new case before he could dwell for too long on this issue with Issy. An adjunct faculty member of the psych department was trapped at the South Pole with mysterious symptoms. Since there was no chance of flying her out, House needed to perform a long-distance DDX. A web-cam was set up on both ends so that everyone could see and speak to each other.

Although House might not think of psychiatrists as 'real' doctors, Cate Milton was an M.D. and could perform any necessary tests to help with her diagnosis. The bigger problem was that medical supplies were limited on the South Pole base and Cate was determined to use them sparingly, in case a real emergency developed in the future.

House argued: "It won't matter if there's a real emergency in the future because there won't be a real live doctor there to deal with it."

As they argued over his demand that she start antibiotics before an infection was confirmed, Cate started breathing heavily. House had her lift her chin and Foreman noticed that her windpipe was deviating to the left, which meant that her right lung was collapsing. With no one around to help, House instructed her how to re-inflate her lung by pulling the plunger out of a syringe and stabbing the needle between the second and third rib in the midclavicular line. The change in pressure allowed her lung to re-inflate and Cate was able to breathe easier.

House was intrigued by the odd symptoms. Her declining kidney function tests made him think that the problem was still renal, but the lung trauma threw a monkey wrench in his thought process.

Foreman muted the microphone and said: "Cancer explains the symptoms. A tumor in her lung or kidney could have thrown a clot to the other organ."

"And you muted the microphone because you're afraid that the tumor might overhear us and realize that we're on to it?"

Foreman rolled his eyes: "Cancer's a hard diagnosis for patients even when they're not on the South Pole. We should figure this out; maybe bring Wilson in for a consult.

House unmuted the microphone and Cate immediately said: "Obviously you two think I'm in bad shape."

House replied: "Only if you count the tumor. It's probably in your abdomen. But you don't have any advanced imaging equipment. You also don't have a surgeon to biopsy it, any stains to use on the slide or an oncologist to analyze it."

Cate's eyes widened: "I have cancer?"

Foreman tried to soften the hardball that House had thrown her. "Possibly. Since the only imaging equipment you have is X-ray, let's start there. X-ray your entire body."

Cate nodded: "I'll upload the images when I'm done."

While Cate was presumably busy X-raying her body, House wandered over to Wilson's office and convinced him that it was time for lunch. Over sandwiches and fries, House bought him up to speed on the case. Wilson was also intrigued by the long-distance DDX and happy to be called in on such an unusual consult.

The images arrived later on that afternoon and House and Wilson examined them together. After reviewing the films for several minutes, Wilson located an enlarged mediastinal lymph node, but that particular node was too deep to be biopsed without a surgeon.

House said: "We'll have to find a node closer to the surface, one that she can biopsy."

Wilson nodded: "That makes sense, but you can't analyze a biopsy without a stain."

"Anything with a strong color could work as a stain, printer ink, food coloring, coffee. While you and Foreman look for an appropriate stain, I'm going to go do a physical and find another swollen node, one that she will be able to biopsy all by herself."

Wilson stared at House's retreating back. How the hell was his friend going to perform a physical on a patient that was thousands of miles away?

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Over dinner that night, House told Issy about his new case.

"Wow. You're doing a DDX by web-cam? That's really cool. Have you done that before?"

House shook his head. "Nope. This is a new one for me. It's interesting, but also frustrating. We have to depend on her to run all the tests; she has very basic medical equipment and minimal supplies and doesn't want to use them unless absolutely necessary. I'm not used to working on such a shoestring budget. She argues with me over every test. How the hell am I going to diagnose her without running tests?"

"Not good to have your patient arguing with you. Bad enough that you have Foreman for that."

"No shit. It would also be handy to have another doctor around to perform certain tests, like a biopsy, but there isn't, so it forces me to get more creative. I'm going to conference with her after dinner tonight and discuss the radiology results. We need to find a node closer to the surface that she can biopsy herself."

"Well, I'll scoot off to the bedroom after dinner and give you your privacy. Wouldn't want to breach doctor-patient confidentiality now, would we?"

He smirked and continued eating the chili and cornbread that Issy had made for their dinner. When they had finished, Issy cleaned up the dishes and then headed into the bedroom with her laptop.

House pulled out his own laptop and connected with the South Pole. After giving Cate the news about the X-rays, he told her that he needed to do a physical examination to find a lymph node close enough to the surface that she would be able to biopsy herself.

She laughed: "Rather difficult for you to do a physical from New Jersey. Since I'm going to biopsy my own lymph node, I believe that I can do my own physical. There's no reason for you to watch."

"I can think of at least three reasons. One of them's medical."

"And where are you? That's not your office."

"You're not at the hospital, so there's no reason for me to be there."

"I'm not getting undressed for you in your apartment."

House rolled his eyes. "You are not in my apartment. You are thousands of miles away."

"I'm not doing it while you're at home. That's just creepy."

"What, you'd rather strip in front of multiple doctors in my office? You want an audience? _Oh,_ I get it. A complete physical requires the presence of a female nurse to be sure that no funny business happens. Well, I just happen to have one here."

"One what?"

"A nurse."

House turned from the screen and bellowed: "Issy! Need you!"

After a moment, Issy dashed into the room. "What's up?"

House tilted his head towards the computer screen. "Want you to meet someone. Cate Milton, Issy Walker."

Cate sputtered: "You just _happened_ to have your own personal nurse around?"

House smirked: "Issy's actually a nursing student, but she graduates in June, so she's almost a nurse."

Cate's face softened: "You have a girlfriend?"

House nodded. "You sound surprised."

"You just didn't mention her before."

Cate's eyes rested on House for a moment longer and then switched over to look at Issy. "It's nice to meet you, Issy."

By the time that Cate addressed her, Issy had recovered from the surprise of seeing such a pretty woman bantering with her 'boyfriend' and had managed to put a neutral expression on her face. "It's nice to meet you too, Dr. Milton."

"Call me Cate."

"OK. Cate."

House patted the couch next to him. "Have a seat. Cate wants a chaperone in the room while I do her physical. She's afraid that I'll get fresh with her."

Issy wasn't sure exactly what was going on but she sat down next to House anyway.

House addressed the screen: "Your nurse is here; now, go get naked so we can get on with the exam."

Cate rolled her eyes. "Yes, Doctor."

She stepped out of sight; House poured himself a shot of bourbon and slouched back against the couch.

Issy asked: "She's going to get naked _down there_, on the South Pole, and you need me _here_ in New Jersey as a chaperone?"

House shrugged: "Just trying to make the patient cooperate."

Issy shook her head and settled back against the couch. They stared at the storage room displayed on the screen while waiting for Cate to return.

After a few minutes, House yelled: "How long does it take you to get naked?"

Cate yelled back: "It's the South Pole. I wear a lot of layers. OK. I'm ready."

She picked up the camera; as it swung around, House and Issy had a quick view of the floor before Cate focused the lens on her face.

House exclaimed: "Hey, I saw socks. That's not naked."

Cate sighed with exasperation: "Have I mentioned that it's freezing here? When they discover lymph nodes in feet, I'll take off my socks."

"Use your right hand to palpate the nodes. Any node you can feel is one we can biopsy. Let's start with your breasts, move down to your groin and then."

Cate interrupted: "I was thinking that I would start at the neck and work my way down."

"Well, you could, but I'd never forgive myself if we found something before we got to your breasts."

Cate's eyes darted to Issy and then back to him. "That's rather rude, House."

"You want me to diagnose you or be a gentleman?"

"You can't do both?"

House just snorted.

Cate blustered on: "Well, it's rather rude to mention that you want to see my breasts right in front of your girlfriend."

"Issy knows that I have a breast fetish. It's probably because my mommy weaned me too quickly. And even though Issy has a most spectacular rack herself, she still _allows_ me to watch porn cuz she knows I _can't_ get enough of looking at those magnificent melons."

Cate turned and addressed Issy: "You don't mind that he watches porn?

Issy wasn't sure where this conversation was going, but she wasn't liking it at all. There seemed to be some kind of weird chemistry between Greg and the blond-haired brown-eyed doctor and it made her feel uncomfortable. "What does Greg's porn habits have to do with diagnosing you?"

House chuckled: "Good point. You can stand there freezing in your socks, or you can start palpating. Start with the anterior cervical nodes."

Cate started palpating her neck. House sipped his bourbon and watched her intently. Issy was surprised at how riveted he was to the screen. Her eyes flicked back and forth between watching Cate probe herself and House watching the examination.

House asked: "Anything in the axillary nodes?"

Cate carefully probed both armpits. "All clear."

"Slide your hand to your sternum and move slowly downward. This is probably the best place to find one since these nodes are relatively close to the enlarged one we saw on the X-ray."

While Cate probed and carefully tried to keep the camera focused on her sternum, House and Issy did catch a quick glimpse of her breasts. Issy surreptitiously watched House to gauge his reaction and despite the previous banter, he seemed much more interested in the exam than in her breasts.

Suddenly he said: "Hold it. Your fingers didn't go quite as deep. Feel that node again."

Cate probed again and then said: "It's swollen."

"Looks like you're doing a biopsy. Wilson and I will call you in the morning and walk you through it. Hopefully he and Foreman will have found a useful stain by then. Get dressed before you freeze."

Cate nodded: "See you in the morning. Bye, Issy. It was nice to meet you."

She turned off her screen before Issy even had a chance to open her mouth.

House drained his bourbon and then turned off his laptop.

"So that's your patient, huh?"

"Yep."

"I know she's a psychiatrist, but for someone with a potentially serious illness, she seemed way too interested in your porn habits."

House chuckled: "That's a shrink for you, spending too much time analyzing _why_ a man likes to look at gorgeous naked ladies when the answer is so obvious. They are gorgeous _and_ they're naked; who wouldn't want to look at them?"

Issy nodded slowly. "Men like to look; I should know."

House frowned at the self-deprecating tone in her voice. "You're beautiful, so of course, men like to look at you and I don't just mean at your _former_ job. I see the looks you get when we're out together and I'm sure they are wondering what a little hottie like you is doing with an old cripple like me."

"You're not a old cripple."

House rolled his eyes. "I'm a lot older than you and the cool-looking cane is not just a fashion accessory."

Issy cupped his cheek and looked right into his eyes. "That's not how I see you. I mean, chronologically, you are a bit older than me and maybe you need the cane to help you walk, but I would never label you that way. You don't act old and crippled. You're young, vital and so incredibly handsome."

She was so good at pumping up his ego, but there was no way that she could really mean it. In a voice laden with sarcasm, he replied: "You're great with the flattery, babe. My ego thanks you. Don't worry; I'll continue to pay you every week even if you really do think I'm a cripple."

Issy's mouth fell open: "Is that what you think? You think I said all that just because you _pay_ me to be here? That is so unfair. I'm not just spouting words that I think you want to hear. I've told you ever since we started this 'relationship' that I don't understand why you are paying me to be your girlfriend when you could have your pick of women. You're brilliant, handsome, talented and sexy. Why do you need a whore like me to pretend to be your girlfriend when you could have someone like Cate?"

He said incredulously: "Cate?"

"Sure, why not? She's beautiful, she's smart and she's a doctor. Someone like her is much more appropriate for you than someone like me."

"You're beautiful and you're smart. You're on your way to becoming a nurse. If your life circumstances had been different, you might have been a doctor yourself."

The corners of her lips drooped as she replied: "But they weren't. I am what I am and I'm not in her league. You could do so much better than me."

House hesitated for just a moment and then went on. "You know what I'd say to you, if you were my _'real'_ girlfriend?"

Her lip trembled as she shook her head.

He gently touched her cheek. "I'd tell you that the things that happened to you in the past were horrible, but they don't affect how I feel about you. You are not a whore to me. You are a lovely, intelligent woman who, for some unknown reason, is able to put up with my idiosyncrasies, and bring a joy to my life that I have never known. I wouldn't trade you for Cate, Angelina, Jenna or anyone else."

He paused for a moment; he couldn't quite bring himself to say the 'L' word even in the context of this particular conversation. He floundered for a moment and then whispered: "My heart is in your hands."

House watched Issy closely. She was speechless while a myriad of emotions flitted across her face. She joined her cupped hands together as if holding an object between them and pressed them to her chest. When she finally spoke, her voice trembled with emotion yet she didn't stutter: "And if I were your real girlfriend, I would promise to take good care of it."

The look in her eyes told him what he had longed to discover. She was concealing her feelings for him in the same way that he was. He felt a thrill, knowing that his feelings were reciprocated, and wondered how to drive away the fear that kept them from revealing their hearts to each other.

He pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her. House planted a kiss on her temple and whispered: "You wouldn't have to promise, baby. I know you would. I _know_."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The next few days were a blur to Issy. Did Greg really mean those words or was he just saying them to make her feel better about herself? He couldn't really love a whore like her, could he? She was too afraid to hope, certain that she would yet again be disappointed. Better to carry on as before and wait to see if he said anything else. If he didn't kick her out in June, maybe that would mean that his words were true.

Greg remained busy with the case over the next couple of days, but in his spare moments, he contemplated their situation. Issy seemed certain that no one could love her because in her mind, she was nothing but a whore. He needed to dispel that notion, but how? Words alone wouldn't do it; he needed to show her somehow. He gave it some thought but nothing readily came to mind. Best to just keep things at status quo for the moment and he was sure he would figure it out by June.


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45**

The next two weeks went by quickly. Issy was preoccupied with the Ortho floor and the last paper that she needed to write while House was busy with two cases at once. He tried desperately to make it home for dinner every night, but was not often successful. There were several nights when Issy was already asleep when he got home. He would heat up the dinner leftovers and eat alone on the couch, sadly reminiscent of his bachelor days, except that now the food was home-cooked and not take-out. One night he never made it home at all, falling asleep in the Eames chair while waiting for test results. Not only did he wake up with a crick in his neck and a larger-than-usual throbbing in his leg, but he also really missed falling asleep with Issy in his arms, relishing her warmth and inhaling her familiar scent. He managed to solve one of the cases that day and made a point of getting home in time for dinner that night. He was desperately missing some quiet time with his girl.

He told her all about the resolution of the case over dinner and while she listened and made appropriate comments, he could tell her mind was elsewhere. As soon as they finished eating, Issy started gathering up the dishes, but House stopped her with a motion of his hand.

"What's on your mind, babe?"

"N-nothing. Everything's fine."

The stutter was very slight but House caught it. He leaned forward and let his breath tickle her ear before whispering in a husky tone: "Everything's fine? Are you sure? Come on. You know you want to tell me. Tell your doctor what's wrong and he'll cure what ails you."

The feel of his breath and the tone of his voice made her want to crawl into the warmth of his arms and never leave. As if he could read her mind, House pulled her onto his lap and embraced her tightly. After planting a gentle kiss on her lips, he pulled back enough to look into her eyes and asked: "What is it, sweetheart? Is everything OK?"

Issy always felt so safe and warm in his arms. It always seemed like nothing bad could befall her as long as Greg held her. But this time, what worried her was actually in Greg's hands. "Friday is March s-seventh. That's s-six months. The bet will be over and you can get your m-money from Wilson."

House waggled his eyebrows at her. "And I'm looking forward to stealing his cash. We need to start thinking about how we're going to spend it."

Issy gave him a small smile but didn't reply.

He cocked his head and gave her a questioning look. "What else is on your mind, babe?"

It took her a moment before she could reply. "Y-you s-still w-want me t-to, hmmmm, I mean, it's, hmmm."

Aggravated at herself for letting her anxiety show, she took a deep breath and tried again. "You still want me to s-stay, right? I can s-still s-stay until June?"

Damn, he had been concerned that she might want to ditch _him_ as soon as the bet was up and here she was, getting so anxious about being kicked out that she was stuttering. He looked down at her worried little face and said: "Yes."

Her eyes brightened immediately: "Really? You _really_ want me to s-stay even though the s-six months is up? I can s-stay until June?"

_Not just until June. Here's your opportunity; tell her how you feel._

He tightened his hold on her, looked into her eyes and said: "I want you to stay."

Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. "You do?"

"Yes."

Issy sighed: "Oh, thank you! You are such a wonderful man. I don't know why I was so s-scared, well, I do know, it's cuz not too many things have gone well in my life and I'm afraid that this close to the finish line something is going to happen and the rug will be pulled out from under me."

"Nothing is going to happen, babe. You are on the home stretch; graduation is only three months away. In fact, I can't wait to see you in your little cap and gown."

Issy gasped: "You, _what?_ You mean; you'll actually come to my graduation?"

He gave her an indulgent smile: "Of course I will. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't go to my girl's graduation?"

She let out a squeal that House was sure could have been heard in the next county. "Oh, you sweet man! I can't believe that you'd do that for me! I've been wanting to ask you, but I thought that maybe it might be too much to ask."

He couldn't believe how such a little thing like that could make her so happy. Rolling his eyes, he smirked: "They call your name and I clap. How hard is that?"

"It's not that it's hard; it's just that you would _be_ there. Someone would be in the audience, clapping for _me_. I wouldn't be all alone."

House could see the tears in her eyes and he desperately wanted to keep them from falling. "You won't be alone, baby. I'll be there and I'll con Wilson into going too. By the way, will you be _naked _under that gown?"

She giggled: "I think I'll have to wear _something_ under it."

He gave a faux sigh: "Oh, too bad. I was envisioning, oh, never mind."

Issy lightly traced his lips with her forefinger. "Well, I might need a rehearsal here at home. You could play 'Pomp and Circumstance' and I could practice by walking down the hall, and I don't necessarily have to wear anything under it then, since it's just a rehearsal."

House sucked her finger into his mouth and tickled it with his tongue. Her small gasp made him smile with delight.

She pouted her lips: "I've been a bad girlfriend. While you've been working so hard every night, I've been falling asleep before you get home. I should have been staying up to help you relax after your hard day."

"Well, I did miss my 'welcome home' kisses."

Issy wrapped her arms around his neck; her fingers played with his hair. "Let me make it up to you now. How about a nice bubble bath and then a massage?"

House pretended to consider: "Hmmm, as pleasant as those sound, I think that I'd just like to go dancing tonight."

Issy grinned: "In the mood for mambo?"

He smiled back: "I always wanna dance with you."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson walked in just as House was signing off on the two charts of his most recent patients. House glanced at the clock and then back at Wilson.

"Little early for lunch. Did you skip the most important meal of the day again?"

His friend smirked and flopped down into the chair. Your concern for my welfare is touching. I think Issy might be rubbing off on you."

"Well, we do like to rub uglies, or wait, is that bump uglies?"

Wilson held up his hand in a 'stop' motion. "Whatever, I don't need the visual."

"Too bad for you, cuz the visual is _really_ something."

Wilson rolled his eyes as he reached into his shirt pocket. "I have to admit that I didn't think you could do it, but you proved me wrong. I'm actually happy to lose this bet because I think Issy has been really good for you. Here ya go."

House took the proffered check. "And I'm happy to take your money. Issy and I have been plotting for weeks how to spend it."

"You could get her a matching motorcycle."

"Oh, _hell_ no. You have no idea how hot it is to have a sexy babe hanging onto you as you rip down the highway at 70 MPH. My motorcycle mama is always gonna ride on my bitch seat."

"Well, I'm sure you'll enjoy the money however you spend it. Maybe after Issy graduates, you could take a little holiday before she starts working."

The right side of House's mouth turned up in a half smile. "We just might."

"I got a patient in five minutes, but I should be free for lunch at noon. See ya then?"

House nodded.

Wilson gave him a wave and strolled out of the office.

House stared at the check for a few minutes. Not that he wasn't happy to have the money, but winning the bet had become rather anti-climatic for him. Issy had become much more important to him than he ever thought possible.

She had been so happy when he had said that he would go to her graduation; he could really tell that his gesture meant a lot to her. Their lovemaking that night had been passionate, her desire to pleasure him evident in every kiss and caress. In turn, he had pleasured her until she begged for mercy. His cock twitched at the memory and he had to chuckle. None of the other women in his life, including Stacy, had ever made him feel the way that Issy did. The mere thought of her could turn him on in an instant, something that hadn't happened to him since he was in his 20's. Issy was everything a man could want in a woman; she was beautiful, intelligent, and sexy. She was a great cook and a talented artist. Playful, not just in bed, but also in the way a child can be playful. She took such delight in the smallest things and he enjoyed her pleasure as his own. Most of all, she _cared_ for him, in a way he hadn't felt cared for since he was a small child.

House wondered what she saw in him. He was so much older than she was and certainly she could find a guy who wasn't handicapped. He quickly brushed those thoughts away. If those things weren't important to Issy, he wasn't going to be concerned with them either.

He decided to stick the check in the bank for now. Issy's birthday was in May and her graduation was in June. Five grand would buy her a couple of great gifts or maybe he would take Wilson's advice and take her on a vacation. Paris would be nice in June. And when exactly did the tulips bloom in Holland? He pulled up Google to find out.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

When House walked through the door a week later, Issy launched herself at him. He laughed at her exuberant hugs and kisses and relished the feel of his woman.

"Boy, you're happy tonight. Am I getting lucky before or after dinner?"

"Both if you want. We got our next assignments today."

Her voice trailed off and Issy looked at him expectantly,

He grinned: "You got what you wanted?"

She threw her hands up in the air in a victory salute. "The ER! I got the ER!"

Issy bounced like a maniacal Tigger on crack. House shook his head in amazement; his girl was actually thrilled to be assigned to work in the cesspool known as the ER. Only Issy could see the bright side of working there. No, wait. There was someone else.

He collapsed on the couch and watched her dance around the room. After a few minutes, he tired of her antics and held out his arms. Issy straddled his lap and captured his mouth in a passionate kiss.

When they finally broke for air, House said: "Damn, you're really happy for someone who is about to work in a place that treats the biggest dregs of society. You know what you are going to see there? Idiots who shove all kinds of objects up their ass and shoot themselves in the head with nail guns."

"I know, I know. But I think it will be exciting and I'll learn a lot. Plus, I want to try it out while I'm still a student to see if it's what I want to do. Nurses with ER certification get a higher salary, you know."

He slid his hands up under her shirt and caressed her bare back. "I know, but don't just chase the money. Find a specialty that you like."

She grinned mischievously: "Is that why you have two?"

He made a face: "Once I started Nephrology, I had to finish it or lose my credits, but Infectious Disease is way more interesting. By the way, one of my former team members is now in the ER. Cameron is an attending there now."

"Cameron? She's the one who had a crush on you?"

He smirked: "Yeah. That's the one."

She touched his cheek. "Well, I can't blame her for having a crush on a handsome sexy guy like you. I wonder if she's over you by now, or if I'll have problems working with her."

"I'm ancient history. She's hung up on her boy toy Chase, my other former duckling, who is on the surgical team now. I don't think you'll have any problems working with _Compassionate Cameron_."

Issy giggled: "And why do you call her that?"

House rolled his eyes. "She cares too much about the idiot patients."

"You have to care about them a little bit."

"A little bit is one thing. But too much caring can interfere with treating them medically. Keep that in mind. Always maintain a professional distance."

"Surely patients can't be in the ER long enough for someone to get attached to them."

House said in a warning tone: "You'd be surprised."

She gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "Point taken. Ready for dinner? I'm broiling a steak and making those fried potatoes and onions that you like."

His stomach growled at her words. "Bring it on, sweetheart."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Two weeks later, Issy started her rotation in the ER. Almost every night over dinner, she had an interesting story to tell House about some idiot's antics that had necessitated him going to the ER.

"You wouldn't believe this guy. Sixty-something, balding, married lawyer that had an Impulse Body spray _glass_ perfume bottle jammed up his rectum. And he did it to himself! He tried various methods to remove it including a _back scratcher_ and finally had to come to us. Good grief! I expect this type of _idiocy_ from teenagers, but a _grown_ man?

House smirked: "There are no age limits on idiots. Some people outgrow it, others don't. He's an example of one who didn't."

Issy was happy with her new rotation. After the tedium of the Ortho floor, the ER challenged her skills as a nurse and provided entertaining stories to tell House after work. After only a few days, Issy felt certain that this was the area that she wanted to specialize in.

As they waited for Wilson to come over with Indian take-out on Friday night, after her first full week in the ER, Issy admitted: "You were right. There are so many idiots out there. And what I'm seeing so far is what happens on _weekdays_. I can't _imagine_ what it must be like on the weekends or on New Year's Eve or after the Super Bowl or some other event where the whole country goes stupid."

"Do you like it as much as you thought you would?"

Issy nodded: "It's challenging; I'm certainly never bored. Some of the patients are so entertaining. Like the old lady with altered mental status who was sure that she was Doris Day and kept regaling us with _'Que Sera Sera'._ Turned out that she was dehydrated and had a urinary tract infection."

House nodded: "UTI's in the elderly often cause altered mental status. It's a common symptom in the over-70 bunch. Did she sing well?"

"Naw, she couldn't carry a tune in a bucket, but it was amusing. I bet night shift has to be even more interesting. I may consider that when I get out of school, plus I'd make more money for working that shift too."

House frowned and leaned forward to touch her cheek: "But I like falling asleep with you in my arms. I'd miss that."

Issy's mouth dropped open; _what did he mean by that?_ Was he or was he not kicking her out after graduation? Was this his way of saying that he wanted her to stay? Before she could open her mouth, the doorbell rang.

She glanced at the door and back at House. "Wilson's here."

He knew what she was thinking but this wasn't the time for that conversation. "I'll get the door. Why don't you grab us some beers?"

Issy nodded and headed to the kitchen; her heart was beating double-time. Did those words mean what she thought they did? Did he want her to continue living with him after she graduated and started working? That would be amazing and almost too good to be true. Certainly if she were still living with him, there would be no way that she would work night shift; she'd want to spend her evenings and nights with him. She glanced into the living room and saw him clowning around with Wilson as they unloaded the bag. She wanted to stay so badly, but was afraid to hope, afraid to ask him if her suspicions were true. She would just have to wait for him to bring it up, and if he didn't, she'd wait until after graduation. Once she had her degree and was on her way to a new career, she could handle it if he told her good-bye. She'd be _miserable_, but hopefully the distractions of a new job would help her cope with it.

A cry came from the living room: "Food's here; where's the beer?"

She took a deep breath and yelled back: "Coming right up."

**A/N: And the mention about the man with the body spray bottle up his rectum is a true story. Thank you for reading!**


	46. Chapter 46

Chapter 46

_Monday May 26__th__, 2008_

As Cuddy waited in the cafeteria line to pay for her salad and tea, Cameron walked up behind her, carrying a tuna salad plate and a Diet Coke.

They greeted each other and then Cameron said: "Dr Cuddy, you haven't gotten back to me yet concerning the ER's budget. I'd like to know if I'm going to be able to hire any more nurses when the new fiscal year begins in July."

"I've reviewed the budget. It's not finished yet, but I'm confident that you'll be able to hire three new nurses, perhaps four. You sound anxious; got anyone in particular in mind?"

They paid for their food and sat down at a corner table. Cameron took a bite of her tuna salad and then replied: "Yes, actually I do. There is a nursing student who is really good. She's energetic, very competent and professional. One of the better students that I've seen in a long time and she's interested in staying in the ER and becoming certified. So I really wanted to know if I was going to be able to offer her a job or not."

"There's no reason why you can't. I'm sure your department will be able to hire three new nurses, so go ahead and offer her a position if you want."

Cuddy took a bite of her salad, chewed and swallowed. "Who is this particular student?"

Cameron replied: "Her name is Isabelle Walker, goes by Issy."

Cuddy choked on her tea. "Isabelle Walker? Really? You like her, huh?"

Her reply was wary. "Yeah, why? You know something about her?"

Cuddy gave her a wry smile. "A little something."

"Well, spill it. I don't want to offer her a job if there's a problem with her."

"Oh, it's not _really_ a problem. Actually I'm surprised that this juicy bit of gossip hasn't gotten around the hospital by now."

Cuddy paused for a moment and then said: "Isabelle Walker is Dr. House's girlfriend."

Cameron chortled: "Yeah, right. She's like 25 years old, energetic, hardworking, _nice_. Does that sound like someone that House would go for?"

"You forgot beautiful, intelligent, sexy and I hear she's a great cook. Now does _that_ sound like someone that House would go for?"

Cameron's mouth fell open but no words came out.

Cuddy shrugged: "I have it on the best authority. Wilson."

"Wilson told you?"

Cuddy nodded. "I found the two guys in the gift shop on Valentine's Day. House was buying flowers and the cashier had wrapped a gift for him. Your former boss split before I could get any answers out of him, but Wilson told me all about it. They've been living together since September."

"_September?_ Wow. They've really kept it on the down-low, haven't they?"

"You know House; he loves to get the dirt on everyone else, but wants to keep his own life private."

Cameron agreed bitterly: "Yes, that's true. Still, I'm amazed that Wilson managed to keep the secret all this time."

"To be quite honest, so am I. The only reason that I can come up with is that Wilson's happy that House has found someone again, so he doesn't want hospital gossip stirring up trouble."

"Well, there's no reason why he can't date her. He's not her supervisor so there's no conflict of interest."

"True, but I think House likes to keep his private life just that. Private."

Cameron smiled: "As the great philosopher Jagger once said: you can't always get what you want."

Cuddy gave her an exasperated look: "What are you going to do?"

Cameron "Well, I _have _to tell Chase; after all I live with him and I just can't keep this juicy bit of gossip about our former boss to myself. I'm sure he'd want to know that House is _happily_ living with a much younger woman."

Cuddy groaned: "And by tomorrow the news will be all over the hospital and Chase will start a betting pool on how long their relationship will last. Great. Thanks for the warning. I'll barricade myself in my office tomorrow. You'd better make yourself scarce. House will go on the warpath when he gets wind of this."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Chase took the news better than Cameron would have thought.

His mouth dropped in surprise when she told him the news. "Seriously? House has a girlfriend?"

"Yes, can you believe it?"

Chase slumped back against the couch; a smile crept slowly across his face. "I thought he seemed a bit more relaxed lately. Getting laid on a regular basis could certainly explain that. Do you know who she is?"

Cameron nodded: "Her name is Isabelle Walker. She's a nursing student that I supervise in the ER and she's much younger than he is."

Chase shrugged: "So he's found himself a young hottie. Good for him. He's needed some love in his life."

"You don't think that it's weird, you know, I mean he's so much _older_ than she is."

"And you were, what, 28, 29, when you had your little thing for him? She's not _that_ much younger."

Cameron blushed at the memory; she'd had a sickening schoolgirl crush on her boss and she was still somewhat embarrassed about it.

Chase saw her blush and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her soundly and said: "I didn't mean to tease you, love. So you had a crush on him, big deal. That's the past. It doesn't matter any more. We're together now. I may not have a cane and a limp, but I hope I make you happy."

He rubbed his short scruffy beard against her cheek until she giggled. He smiled against her skin and kissed her cheek.

"I love you, Allison."

"I love you too, Robbie."

He pressed his lips onto her and they spent a few delicious minutes doing a tango with their tongues. When they finally broke for air, they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes for a moment and then Cameron snuggled deeper into his embrace. Chase held her tighter and whispered: "I hope he's as happy with her as I am with you."

Cameron let out a contented sigh; Chase kissed her forehead and rested his cheek against the top of her head.

After a few minutes of bliss, he said: "So, no one knows about this, except Wilson and Cuddy? Damn, I can't wait to see the look on Foreman's face when he hears the news."

Cameron giggled: "And you're just the man for the job, aren't you?"

Chase chuckled: "Someone's gotta do the dirty work."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Around noon the next day, House barged into Wilson's office. "After all these months, you finally spill the beans _now?_ I can't get my team to focus on the case. Foreman just sits there with a smug look on his face. Thirteen wants to help us 'plan the wedding' and Kutner wants to know when we're having a baby!"

Wilson said calmly: "You're getting married? Is Issy pregnant?"

House dropped onto the couch. "No, we're _not_ getting married and Issy is _not _pregnant. Don't start any _more_ rumors. Christ, we've only been living together for a few months and those idiots have us married off and knocked up."

"They just want to see you happy."

House answered in a sarcastic tone: "Yeah, right. A rug rat puking and peeing all over everything would totally make me happy."

"Marriage might."

He gave his friend a warning look: "Don't go there. Everything was fine, just the way it was, at least until you had to broadcast our private life all over the hospital."

Wilson shook his head: "It wasn't me this time. Cuddy told Cameron who told Chase and thus the dominos fell."

House scrubbed his face with his hands. "Christ. It figures."

"What's the big deal? You've dealt with worse rumors than this. A lot of people may actually be happy for you."

House lumbered up from the couch and headed for the door. "It's not me I'm worried about. Very few people would _dare_ to say anything to me. I just don't want anyone hassling Issy."

Mouth agape, Wilson stared at his friend's retreating back. House was _worried_ about Issy; he didn't want anyone hassling _her_. Damn, he must really be in love. Chuckling, he returned to his paperwork, all the while wondering what kind of fool in love that House would turn out to be.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House hurried to the ER. He wanted to warn Issy that their cover had been blown before anyone could get to her. As he pushed his way through the double doors into the department, he could see that he was too late. Those bitchy twins had cornered her. Well, they were about to feel the wrath of House. He started their way, but Issy caught his eye and gave him a slight wink, causing him to slow his step. He moved cautiously closer until he could hear their conversation.

One of the bitchy blondes was saying: "I can't believe you hooked up with such an _old_ man, even if he _is_ a doctor. And he's a _cripple_ too."

The other one said: "Oh, come on, Amy. After all, _look_ at her. She can't do much better than an old cripple. It's amazing that she found anyone at all. And that Dr House is such a."

Issy interrupted: "A stud in bed."

House had to slap his hand over his mouth to keep from laughing.

Amy was aghast. "_What_ did you say?"

Issy turned to her with a smug smile on her face. "Dr. House, _Greg_, is a stud in bed. His injury slows him down only when he's walking, but nowhere else. In bed, he's very _agile_. He has a _big_ appetite and he's a."

She paused for a moment and held her hands parallel to each other, about ten inches apart.

"_Big_ boy. Trust me, he's _far_ from old and crippled. We had to soundproof the bedroom because the neighbors kept complaining that my screams of passion were keeping them awake at 2AM."

One of the twins exclaimed: "No way!"

Issy smiled serenely: "Way. The man is amazing in bed. He loves going down on me and making me come, until I can't take it any more and I have to scream for mercy. Does Dr. Robinson do that for you, Ashley?"

In a small voice, the twin on the left replied: "No. He doesn't like to do that. Says he thinks it's gross."

Issy shook her head and said sympathetically: "Bad luck for you. You don't know what you're missing. Oral sex is _very_ pleasurable. I'm surprised that Dr. Robinson doesn't like it. I thought every man loved getting a blow job."

"Oh, he likes that. He just doesn't like to do it to me."

Issy's eyebrows rose: "Oh, it's OK for _you_ to go down on _him_, but he won't do that to you? What a selfish pig. You can't be serious about this guy. If he's that selfish in bed, I bet he's selfish in other areas of your relationship. Does he ever let you control the remote?"

In a small voice, she replied: "No. He likes to pick the programs."

Issy rolled her eyes. "Well, the best of luck to you."

Issy suddenly smiled. "Oh, there's my guy."

House took his cue and walked over to Issy. The twins looked somewhat abashed at finding him behind them. He gave them an appraising look and then turned to Issy.

In a low, husky voice, he said: "Hey, baby."

Issy's smile was 100 watts bright. "Hey. Are you down here on business or were you looking for me?"

"I was looking for you, sweetheart. Wanted to tell you that we're all set for the weekend. I got our favorite suite at the Plaza, tickets to see _'Jersey Boys'_

and reservations at _'Tout Va Bien'_."

Issy squealed: "Oh, I can't wait. I love going to New York with you."

"_Moi aussi_. I can't wait to get you in that Jacuzzi again. Remember last time?"

House wiggled his eyebrows for effect and Issy giggled. "Yes, only this time we should."

She glanced at the twins and then back at House. In a conspiratorial whisper, she said: "I'll tell ya later."

"Looking forward to it, sweetheart. I'll see you after work."

House turned and limped slowly away, his role played to perfection. Right before he got out of earshot, he heard one of the twins say: "Oh my god! He takes you on romantic weekends to New York?"

The other one chimed in: "Yeah, and what exactly did you do in that Jacuzzi?"

House smiled all the way back to his office.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

He was still smiling as he sat down behind his desk. Issy had handled herself exceptionally well with the twins and he felt really proud of her. His heart swelled with love and he wanted to sweep her up in his arms and say those three little words to her. He no longer felt like he could wait until graduation to tell her; he needed to tell her ASAP.

House glanced at the calendar; her birthday was only a few days away and he had still not gotten her a gift. Time to get busy. He logged onto Tiffany's website and started looking around. After a short time, he found the perfect gift. It was an Elsa Peretti Open Heart pendant. Simple yet elegant, the platinum heart was set with six small diamonds. It would look beautiful around Issy's neck. He phoned Tiffany's in Manhattan and arranged to have the pendant hand delivered by messenger the following afternoon. It was worth the extra expense to ensure that it was here in time for her birthday.

He could see himself handing her the small box and saying those words again, the words that he had said just a short while back. _"My heart is in_ _your hands."_ And he knew, without a doubt, that she would promise to take good care of it. Then he'd tell her that he loved her and that the arrangement was over; she was his real girlfriend now. He wondered if he could wait all the way until Friday to tell her as he longed to hear her say those three little words back to him. He'd have to try; he really did want to give her a great birthday even if those weekend plans they had discussed in front of the twins were completely phony. That didn't matter; after graduation, he'd take her on a nice holiday to celebrate. Tulip season was over; but what the hell, they could still hit Paris.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Chris Taub managed to keep his face expressionless during the workday, but when he climbed into his car that evening, he finally let loose with almost hysterical laughter. To think, that all those months ago, he had actually been stitching up House's _girlfriend_ was just too much to contemplate. No wonder the man had acted so concerned about her, it all made sense now. He still wondered what had happened to her, how had she got cut? It had to be something more than just a random mugging; the viciousness of the attack indicated some kind of personal vendetta, but had it been against Issy or against House?

He shook his head as he turned the key in the ignition. "And I'll probably never find out."

Taub backed his car out of his spot and headed for home.


	47. Chapter 47

**Ready for the roller coaster? Be sure and fasten your seat belt.**

**Chapter 47**

_Thursday May 29, 2008_

Abby glanced at her little sister, sitting at the opposite end of the back seat. Maddie had not spoken a word since last night's events. She just hugged her teddy bear to her chest and wouldn't even make eye contact with Abby. When Dad went near her this morning, she had started to tremble and made a funny squeaking noise. Dad had just laughed and had made Abby get Maddie dressed.

Abby had been surprised about the amount of blood in Maddie's panties that morning. When she pointed it out to Dad, he shrugged it off and said: "You bled when it was your first time, too. Don't you remember? I told you, it's a sign of becoming a woman."

Abby did remember; the first time _had_ hurt a lot and she had bled but she knew it was not as much as Maddie was bleeding now. She had been older though, when it happened to her. She had been ten-and-a-half, and her sister had not yet turned eight. Maybe that was why Maddie was bleeding more. Her little sister bled through her clean panties before Abby could finish getting her dressed and had to get her some fresh ones. This time, Abby folded a couple of paper towels and lined the panties with them, hoping to keep this pair from getting ruined.

Finally they were dressed and ready to go; Dad put the suitcase in the trunk of the car and he checked out of the no-name motel that they had stayed last night. Abby wondered vaguely where they would end up tonight, but decided it didn't really matter anyway. Every day was the same as every other day. They would drive for a long time and then Dad would find a motel for the night. They would get a room and Abby would have to sleep in his bed while Maddie got the other one all to herself. For a long time, she had envied her sister's luck in being able to sleep alone.

Last night, things changed. Dad announced that it was time for Maddie to sleep in the bed with him. Abby opened her mouth to protest; her sister was so tiny, surely Dad couldn't mean it was time for her to do _that_. But Dad had frozen her with one of his really mean looks; so she shut her mouth and did as she was told. She had climbed into the other bed; the first time that Maddie had screamed, Abby had pulled the pillow over her head to try to block out the sounds.

Since then, Maddie had not spoken a word. She hadn't done much of anything except clutch her old teddy bear. Abby spent the morning sneaking worried peeks at her and glancing out the window as they drove down Route 27. It was almost noon, when she saw a sign announcing that they were entering Princeton. The name meant nothing to her; it was just another town along the road.

Maddie shifted in her seat and leaned her head against the car door. She winced and tugged at her jeans. Abby knew from experience that her pee-pee must be sore and she wished that there were something that she could do for her little sister. As she stared at Maddie, she became aware of the rust colored stain that had appeared in the crotch of her faded jeans. Was that blood? Had Maddie bled through her panties, the paper towels and now her jeans too?

Abby debated; should she say something to Dad? He had gotten irritated this morning when she had mentioned it, and she was a little afraid to do that again. He might hit her if he got really mad. What else could she do? Maybe she should take Maddie to the bathroom and put some more paper towels in her panties.

Suddenly Dad announced: "I'm getting hungry. How about I get us some sandwiches and we'll have a picnic?"

Abby knew that if she didn't answer, he would get mad, so she piped up and said: "That sounds good, Dad. Can we have Cokes?"

"Sure, we'll all have Cokes. You want ham or turkey?"

"Either one is OK, just no onions, OK?"

"You got it, baby. Now, just wait in the car while I go get them."

"Dad, we have to pee. Can we go use the bathroom in Subway while you get the sandwiches?"

"OK, fine. Just keep a hold of your sister and come right back."

They walked into the restaurant; it was noon and there was a line. Dad was going to be irritated if he had to wait too long. Abby held Maddie's hand tightly as they made their way to the back of the restaurant to locate the ladies' room. Once they were inside and locked in the same stall, Abby pulled down Maddie's pants and was shocked to see how much blood there was. She felt really scared; she was going to have to tell Dad and he was going to be mad, but she couldn't let Maddie keep bleeding like this.

She asked her sister: "Do you have to pee?"

Maddie didn't verbally respond, but she did climb onto the toilet seat. Suddenly she started to cry.

Abby cried out: "Maddie, whats'amatter? Does it hurt when you pee?"

The child nodded her head and continued to cry.

Abby was at a complete loss as to what to do. It had not been that bad for her; it had never hurt when she peed and she definitely had not bled enough to soak through her jeans. Abby was going to have to tell Dad; Maddie needed to see a doctor who could make the bleeding stop. She helped Maddie wipe and put some new paper towels inside of her panties. After getting her sister dressed, Abby quickly peed and then led Maddie out of the restroom.

The back door to the restaurant was open; it had been closed when they had gone inside the restroom. Abby watched as one of the employees hauled two large bags of trash to the dumpster. On the other side of the dumpster, she noticed a blue sign with a big 'H' on it. H stood for Hospital. That sign showed where the hospital was. There would be a doctor there who could help Maddie. She wondered if she could convince Dad to take her there.

Abby glanced back into the restaurant. The line was moving very slowly and she could see that there were several people still ahead of Dad. His face looked very irritated and Abby felt sure that he would not be amenable to her suggestion.

She glanced at the open door; the worker was now throwing the bags of trash into the dumpster. He would be returning in a moment and undoubtedly closing the door, shutting off their means of escape. Abby made a split decision. She tugged on Maddie's hand and said: "C'mon."

They walked past the worker as he returned to the back door. Abby gave him a friendly wave, and he waved back. As soon as he had shut the back door, Abby yanked on Maddie's hand. "Let's go. Hurry!"

They walked as quickly as they could in the direction of that blue arrow. When Abby saw a sign directing them to the Emergency Room, she headed in that direction. Blood had to be an emergency, right? As they approached the entrance, suddenly she got scared. Dad was going to be really mad that she had done this. Maybe they should just go back. By now, he was probably wondering where they were. Maybe he was already looking for them and shouting out their names. He was going to be mad.

Abby reasoned, well, if he was going to be mad anyway, she may as well do what she had set out to do. He might get doubly mad but at least she'd get a doctor to look at Maddie.

A nurse in bright blue scrubs was helping an older lady out of a wheelchair and into her car. Abby heard her say: "Bye, Mrs. Anderson. Call us if you need anything. I hope you feel better soon."

The woman turned away from the car and started to push the wheelchair back to the door. She had a friendly face. Abby decided to ask her what to do.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Mrs. Anderson had fallen and thought she had broken her arm. After an examination and X-rays, it turned out to be just a bad sprain. Dr Cameron instructed her to wear a sling, use ice, take some ibuprofen and she should be fine in a few days. Per hospital policy, a member of the hospital staff pushed her out to her waiting ride in a wheelchair.

After assisting the patient into her car, Issy turned around, intending to push the wheelchair back inside the ER when something caught her attention. There were two little girls staring at her. They looked to be too young to be out and about without adult supervision. Concerned, Issy walked over to them.

"Hi. Do you need some help? Are you lost?"

The older child spoke: "This is the hospital, right?"

Issy nodded: "That's right."

The girl continued: "My sister's bleeding. I think she needs a doctor."

Issy's level of concern ratcheted up a couple of notches. She looked the girl over but saw no obvious injuries. Her complexion was rather pale though.

The older girl spoke again: "Down here."

She pointed at the younger girl's crotch.

Now Issy could see the rust-colored stains. The child was bleeding _there_? In Issy's mind, that could only mean one thing, although she hoped that she was wrong.

Carefully, she asked: "How did she get hurt?"

The older child looked fearfully over her shoulder. "Hmmm, she fell down. Can we go inside? There's a doctor inside, right?"

"Yes, there's a very nice doctor inside. What about you, sweetie? Are you hurt too?"

"No, no. Cuz I'm bigger, but Maddie's not going to be eight until next month. She's too little."

The child clapped her hand over her mouth as if aware that she had said too much.

Issy was positive that her instincts were right. She needed to remain calm and garner the children's trust. She looked at the small child, who had remained silently clutching her teddy bear throughout the entire conversation. "Wow, Maddie, your birthday's next month. That's great. That's a very nice bear you have there. What's his name?"

The child stared at her for a moment and then mumbled: "Mr. Fuzzy."

Issy saw the surprised look on her sister's face and wondered what that was about. "Well, would you and Mr. Fuzzy like to ride in the wheelchair? I'll push you inside."

Maddie looked at her sister, who nodded. Then the small child looked back at Issy and whispered: "OK."

She allowed Issy to help her into the wheelchair. The child was dwarfed by the size of the seat.

Issy asked: "Do you want to ride with your sister? The seat is big enough."

Maddie immediately moved over and made room for her sister, who climbed in beside her.

As Issy pushed the chair through the automatic doors, she asked: "Well, I know Maddie's name. What's yours?"

After a moment's hesitation, she answered: "Abby."

"And how old are you?"

The older child mumbled: "I'll be twelve in July."

So young, just children, but then again, she had been that small once and it had happened to her too.

"You're certainly a very good big sister bringing Maddie to the doctor."

As they entered the ER, Issy spotted the very person that she wanted to see, standing by the desk. She pushed the chair in that direction.

"I'm going to introduce you to Dr. Cameron. She's very nice; I think she'll be able to help."

Cameron set down the chart and turned around just as they approached. Issy gave her a pointed look and said calmly. "Dr. Cameron, I want you to meet Abby and Maddie. Maddie is having a little problem, some bleeding in the _perineum_ area. I thought maybe we could go into Room six and see what we could do to help her out."

Room six was where they took the rape victims. All the equipment needed to collect evidence was in that particular room. Issy figured that if she mentioned it, Dr. Cameron would get the hint without Issy coming right out and saying what she suspected.

Cameron's eyes widened for a moment, but she smiled in a friendly manner at the girls. "Hi, girls. It's nice to meet you. Yes, let's go into Room six. It's free right now."

As they headed towards Room six, Abby glanced fearfully over her shoulder. The look was not lost on either of the two adults, who exchanged worried glances. Issy knew that they were not supposed to treat children without parental consent, but she was hoping that _'compassionate Cameron'_, as Greg referred to her, would be willing to bend that rule for these girls.

Issy pushed the wheelchair into the room and Cameron closed the door behind them. They needed to examine the child, but wanted to do so in a manner that would not frighten her.

Issy squatted down in front of the chair. "Maddie, do you think you and Mr. Fuzzy could get up on that table for me? I'll give you a hand."

Maddie nodded and climbed out of the wheelchair. She let Issy help her up onto a stool and then onto the exam table.

As she sat there with her legs dangling, the rust-stains on her blue jeans were even more evident that before. Cameron pulled on a pair of gloves and sat down on the stool in front of the child. In a calm voice, she asked: " Maddie, can you tell me when the bleeding started?"

The young child looked at her sister with big fearful eyes. Abby bit her lip and then replied: "It was there when she woke up this morning. I put some paper towels in her panties, but she kept bleeding. She cried when she peed, said it hurt."

Cameron nodded: "Do you remember doing anything in particular that might have made it hurt?"

The two girls stared at each other for a moment and then simultaneously shook their heads. The fear radiating off their bodies was palpable.

"Maddie, I need to examine the hurt area so I can make it stop bleeding. I'm going to give you a gown to wear and once you slip that on, we'll take off your jeans and panties, OK?"

Again the girls looked at each other. Issy wondered what was going through their heads; they seemed to be absolutely terrified. At the moment, they were safe behind the closed door of Room six, but they probably didn't feel that way.

With a lot of gentle coaxing, Issy and Cameron managed to get a gown on the child and slip off her other clothes. Cameron took note of the bloody paper towels and slipped everything into an evidence collection bag. As they tried to ease Maddie into the necessary position for the exam, she whimpered and refused to cooperate.

Issy motioned Abby closer to the table. "We're not going to hurt you, Maddie. We just need to examine you so we can see where you're bleeding and fix it. Abby is right here; she'll hold your hand if you want. Dr. Cameron will be very gentle. Can you lay back for me?"

Under her gentle guidance, Maddie lay back on the table and Cameron placed her feet into the stirrups. There was considerable bleeding and Cameron was concerned at what she would find. She selected the smallest speculum that they had and warmed it in her hand.

"Maddie, you seem to be bleeding from your private area, from where you go pee-pee. I need to look at the inside part and in order to do that, I'm going to put this little tool in there. It's like a duck's beak, isn't it? Quack, quack, quack."

Maddie actually cracked a small smile at Cameron's antics with the speculum. The doctor smiled back and then, as gently as possible, inserted the speculum into the child's vagina.

The child screamed. "NO! NO!"

Abby cried out: "Stop! You're hurting her."

Cameron immediately withdrew the instrument. "I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to hurt you. It's out now."

It took a few minutes to calm the frightened child. Abby lay partially on the table next to Maddie and hugged her. Issy stroked the child's hair and exchanged worried glances with Cameron.

When her tears subsided, Issy wiped Maddie's face with a tissue. In a calm, gentle voice, she said: "Sweetie, Dr. Cameron thinks you might be bleeding from inside your private area. Did something hurt you there, down where you go pee-pee?"

Maddie whimpered and looked at her older sister. Abby bit her lip. After a few minutes, she said: "We're not supposed to tell."

Issy inquired in a gentle tone: "It's a secret?"

Abby nodded.

Issy went on: "Is it a good secret or a bad secret? A good secret would be like you know that you are having Maddie's favorite food for dinner, but want her to be surprised, so you don't tell her. Is it that kind of secret?"

Abby shook her head.

"So it's a bad secret, huh?"

The older girl nodded.

"Who told you not to tell?"

Maddie looked frightened and shook her head at Abby. Her sister stared at her for a moment and then seemed to make up her mind. In a flat voice, she answered: "Dad."

"Your dad told you not to tell the bad secret."

There was another nod from Abby.

"Did he say what would happen if you told?"

Abby thought for a moment and then said: "He'd be really mad."

"What happens when he gets mad?"

"He yells at us and he spanks us really hard. Once he slapped me across the face when I tried to get him not to spank Maddie. I fell against the dresser and got cut here."

She pointed to a healed scar at the corner of her right eyebrow.

"I can see why you wouldn't want to tell the bad secret. You don't want him to get mad and spank you."

Abby nodded. "Right."

"Where's your dad now?"

The older girl whispered: "Subway."

Issy felt a chill go down her spine. "Subway? The one that's about two blocks away?"

Abby nodded. "He got in line and we went to the bathroom. Maddie was still bleeding, and she cried when she peed. I thought she needed a doctor and the back door was open and I saw the hospital sign so we came here."

"That was very smart of you, Abby. You are a really good sister. Now, do you think you could tell Dr. Cameron the bad secret? Cuz if she knows what that is, maybe that would help us take care of your sister better."

"If I tell you, you won't tell Dad that we told, right? Cuz he'll be mad."

Cameron reassured the frightened child. "We won't tell your dad that you told."

Abby thought for a few minutes. If she told, it would help Maddie get better. They seemed really nice and wanted to help and they promised not to tell Dad. Maybe it would be OK, if she told, just this once. But they had to hurry.

"OK, but can you make her better fast? We've been gone for a while now, and he's probably wondering where we are."

Cameron said: "I'll be as fast as I can."

"OK. You promise?"

Cameron crossed her heart. "I promise."

Abby took a deep breath: "OK. Ever since we left, I have to sleep in Dad's bed and Maddie sleeps in the other bed in the motel. Well, last night was the first time that she slept in Dad's bed and I had to sleep in the other bed. When he did it to me the first time, it hurt and I bled a little, but I was ten-and-a-half when that happened. Maddie's not even eight yet, so I think cuz she's so little that's why she is bleeding so much. I told Dad that she was bleeding a lot but he just said that it was a sign of being a woman."

"So the secret, that you are not supposed to tell, is that you sleep in your Dad's bed?"

The child ducked her head and whispered: "And we're naked."

Cameron pressed her lips together in a thin line and did her best to maintain a calm composure. There was no need to question the child further; she didn't need it completely spelled out to know what had happened to these children.

Issy queried gently: "Abby, you said ever since you left. Left where?"

"St. Louis. We lived there with Mom in an apartment after she and Dad got divorced. Maddie was really little when we moved there. We only saw him every other weekend. One day, he picked us up at school and said we were going to live with him now. He said Mom was getting married again and didn't want us anymore."

"Did your Mom have a boyfriend?"

Abby shrugged: "If she had one, I never saw him. She was always home with us."

"Where did you go after you left St. Louis?"

"Lots of places. We've been driving around and staying in motels. A different place every night."

"Have you been back to school?

She shook her head: "No. Dad says we don't need to go, that he'll teach us everything we need to know. We go to museums and he reads to us."

"Have you talked to your Mom at all?"

Abby shook her head sadly. "Dad says she doesn't want to see us or talk to us anymore."

Issy wasn't buying that for a minute. There had to be more to this story than the tales that their Dad was feeding them, just like she knew that there had to be more to the story of why her own Daddy had left. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and as she turned it on, asked: "Do you remember your phone number?"

Abby immediately recalled the number: "555-9620."

Issy looked at Cameron: "What's the area code for St. Louis?"

Cameron pulled out her phone and dialed directory assistance. "The area code is 314."

Issy dialed the number and waited. It rang three times and then there was a clicking noise. Then the ringing started again. After two more rings, a woman picked up.

"Hello?"


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48**

Elizabeth Cooper's two daughters had been kidnapped by her ex-husband on the one day that she was five minutes late picking them up from school. The crossing guard confirmed seeing the children get into a beige sedan that matched the current description of that bastard's car. She had called the police immediately. Unsupervised visits were a violation of their custody agreement and considering her ex's past, the police had taken swift action, but to no avail. Her ex-husband and her two precious children had vanished off the face of the earth. After a month of staying home and waiting for the phone to ring, she had finally returned to work. She had to hope that one day the girls would get a chance to call her, so she had set up her phone in such a way that if she didn't answer her home phone after three rings, it would immediately ring through to her cell phone. That phone went with her everywhere, even to the bathroom. If she went to a movie, the phone went on 'vibrate' and she held it in her hand for the entire movie.

If she had only known about his criminal past, she would have never married the bastard, but their second daughter had been born before his past surfaced. She remembered the day that she had accidentally discovered a hidden file on his computer and found tons of child pornography. The images had sickened her. Something told her to search the database for sex offenders and she was horrified when she found his name and photo on the website. He had been charged with using the Internet to solicit a child for sex and with possession of child pornography two years before she had met him. Once she recovered from the shock of discovering that her husband was a pedophile, she immediately kicked him out and filed for divorce. There was no way that she was going to let him be around her daughters. She won full custody and he was allowed only supervised visits.

She had always meant to tell her girls exactly why their dad wasn't allowed to see them more often, but as long as the visits were supervised, she kept the secret to herself. Now, almost a year and a half after they had disappeared, she kicked herself constantly for not telling them sooner, although who knows how much good it would have done. They probably would have still gotten in the car with him. He was their dad, after all.

She was just about to head out for lunch when her cell phone rang. A glance at the Caller ID showed it was her own home calling, so she knew that the call had been rerouted. Hoping against hope, she crossed her fingers and opened the phone.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

A woman's voice answered Issy's call. "Hello?"

Issy replied: "Hi, you don't me, but my name's Isabelle Walker. I'm a nursing student at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in Princeton, New Jersey. Hmmm, I don't know how to say this, but I think your daughters might be here."

Elizabeth slumped back into her chair; her whole body was trembling. Her voice grew louder and changed into a more shrill tone. "Abby and Maddie? They're with you? Are you serious? My children are there? _Where_ did you say you were calling from?"

The volume of her voice brought two of her associates into her office with worried looks on their faces. She stared at them, wide-eyed, as she listened to the voice on the other end of the phone.

"Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in Princeton, New Jersey. They just wandered in off the street and Abby remembered your phone number. Do you want to speak to them?"

Tears flowed down her cheeks: "Oh God, yes. Let me talk to my babies."

As she waited for Issy to hand the phone over, she hurriedly scribbled on a pad and handed it to one of her associates. The message said: "The girls. New Jersey. Call Detective Thomas NOW!"

The woman hurried to the outer office to do just that while Elizabeth scribbled the words 'Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, Princeton New Jersey' on another sheet of paper. She tapped the paper; her other associate noted the name and rushed off to repeat the message to the one making the call.

Just then a tiny voice came on the line and said hesitantly: "Mom? Is that you?"

Elizabeth wanted to bawl at hearing her oldest daughter's voice again, but she managed to stay composed. "Abby, sweetheart. Oh, it's so good to hear your voice again. I've missed you and Maddie every single day."

"You did? Dad said that you were getting married again and that you didn't want us anymore."

Her blood boiled: "That's not true. I did not get married and I never stopped wanting you. You're my babies and I love you so much. I have been looking for you every single day since you left. I've missed you so much."

Abby started to cry: "Oh, Mommy! We missed you too. Please come and get us. We want to go home. We're tired of sleeping in motels with Dad."

Elizabeth stood up just as her associate ran back into the room with a written message that Detective Thomas was on his way here. "I'm coming to get you, baby. Now, please let me talk to that nice nurse again, so I can find out exactly where you are."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Issy gave the girls' mom all the information that she asked for. There was going to be a happy ending for these girls and she was thrilled for them.

However, Maddie's injuries still needed to be cared for and Abby should also be examined for signs of rape. Charges of kidnapping and rape would be filed against their dad and the more evidence they had, the better their chance to get a conviction and a long jail sentence.

Even without the exam, Dr. Cameron was sure that Maddie had a severe vaginal laceration that would require surgical intervention. She borrowed Issy's phone and stepped outside to speak to Elizabeth. It was her sad duty to tell the woman that she was almost positive that her ex-husband had raped both of her girls. Elizabeth responded by screaming profanities and Cameron let her vent for a few minutes.

When the woman had calmed down and apologized for her outburst, Cameron said: "That's quite alright. No need to apologize to me. I'd be doing the same thing as you plus finding my sharpest knife to castrate him with. I know you are going to get here as fast as you can, but Maddie is bleeding. She needs an internal exam and possibly some sutures to take care of her injuries. I can wait for you to get here or you can give me verbal permission to proceed now. I need to sedate her, even for the internal exam."

"You have my permission to take care of my daughter's injuries. You also have my permission to do an internal exam on Abby. Get any evidence that you can so we can put that bastard away for the rest of his immoral life."

Cameron saw Cuddy as she entered the ER and she frantically waved the Dean over to her. When Cuddy was standing next to her, Cameron hit speakerphone and said: "Elizabeth, I need you to repeat that in front of my boss. Do you give me permission to sedate and examine your younger daughter, and perform any necessary procedure to stop the bleeding and repair any damage?"

"This is Elizabeth Cooper and I give you permission to sedate and examine my daughter Maddie and to perform any necessary medical procedure to stop the bleeding and repair any damage. I also give you permission to do an internal exam on my daughter Abby and complete a rape kit on both girls. Now, the detective in charge of this case is here and I've given him all the information. He is faxing everything to your local police department and having officers sent over to the hospital. My ex-husband has to be close by. You've got to watch out for him. He'll try to snatch the girls again."

Cuddy asked: "Can you fax his photo directly to us? I want to put our staff on alert before the police get here. Our fax number is 609-555-4563."

"Doing that as we speak. It should arrive in just a minute. Of course, I haven't seen him in a while. Check with Abby and make sure he hasn't grown a beard or something. Detective Thomas said to tell you not to try to capture him yourself. He is considered armed and dangerous, just hide the girls and wait for the police. The FBI is also being notified. I'm heading to the airport and getting on the first available plane. Please take good care of my girls until I get there. And thank that nurse for me. I owe her everything."

The woman choked up. Tears came to Cameron's eyes as well. "You can thank her yourself when you get here. And don't worry, we'll take good care of your girls."

They said goodbye and Cameron closed the phone. Cuddy shot her a questioning look and said: "You better start at the beginning and don't leave anything out."

Cameron replied: "Let's check the fax machine first."

The promised photo was there and Cameron quickly made twenty copies. She paged the head of security and passed out copies for him and his staff. Cameron also gave copies to the ER personnel.

Everyone received the following instructions: "Watch out for this guy, but do not try to detain him. Call a 'Mr. Gray' if he shows up and then just keep an eye on him. The police are on their way."

Cameron placed a page to Chase for a surgical consult that she hoped would not be needed.

As they walked back towards room six, clutching the last copy of the photo, Cuddy said: "Now. The whole story. Don't leave anything out."

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Kenneth Wayne Cooper was getting pissed. Idiots were working at this Subway and couldn't take an order if their fucking life depended on it. He glanced at his watch; he'd been in line for fifteen minutes already and there were still five people ahead of him. This was just ridiculous; time to pack it in and just swing though the drive-thru at McDonald's instead.

He looked around for the girls; they had been in the bathroom for a long time. They should have been back by now. Eyes narrowed, he scanned the small restaurant, but there was no sign of them. He stepped out of line and headed towards the restrooms.

Behind him, a voice called out: "Hey dude, you step out of line; you're gonna lose your spot."

His hand automatically went to his pocket where he kept his switchblade hidden, but then he shook his head. The greasy-haired jerkwad wasn't worth the trouble.

Cooper snarled: "This crappy food ain't worth waiting this long for. I've gotten faster service at a good steakhouse."

He stormed back to the restrooms and pounded on the ladies' room door. "Abby! Maddie! Get your butts outta there. We're going to McDonald's instead."

There was no sound from the restroom. He shoved the door open and stepped inside. He still didn't see his kids. He pushed open each stall and nothing. The restroom was deserted.

He stalked back out to the small dark hallway. The only door to the restaurant was the one where they had entered. They couldn't have gotten past him to get out. He checked the men's rooms but they weren't in there either. What the fuck? Where did they go?

Cooper scanned the restaurant again, still no girls. He was about to go ballistic when he noticed the emergency exit. It had one of those stupid alarms on it that would sound if a patron tried to sneak out without paying, but maybe it was turned off and the girls got out the back.

He pressed the bar to open the door and the alarm went off. They couldn't have gotten out this way without everyone being aware of it. Within a minute, the manager and another man were at the back door.

"Hey, buddy, what are you doing? That's the emergency exit. You can go out the front."

Cooper played the part of a worried dad: "My girls went to the restroom and now they're gone. They didn't come back to the front, so they must have gone out the back. Who has the ability to turn off the alarm?"

The manager huffed: "I do, but we only turn it off when we need to go out back to throw out the trash."

"When was the last time you did that?"

The manager turned his head and bellowed: "Peter! Get back here."

A pimply-faced teenager appeared. "Yes, Mr. Singh?"

"When was the last time that you took the trash out?"

"Why? Is it full again? I swear I just did it like fifteen minutes ago, but I'll go do it again."

The kid turned to leave, but the manager caught him by the sleeve. "No, no, that's not why I'm asking. This man says that his daughters went to the restroom while he was waiting in line and they never came back."

The kid scratched his head. "Want me to look in the ladies' room for you?"

Cooper was almost at the end of his patience. "No, I've already done that, but they are not in there. Think for a moment. When you took out the trash, did you happen to see two little girls?"

The kid appeared to be thinking. His eyes rolled upward and his mouth hung open. Cooper was just about to wring his neck to get the answer out of him when the kid finally said: "Oh, yeah. Two girls about this big and this big."

He held his hand out in front of him to indicate the two different heights. "The little one had a teddy bear."

Cooper said excitedly: "That's them. Where did they go?"

The teenager shrugged: "I dunno. I saw them after I dumped the trash. When I was walking back to the door, they were just, like, there. The big girl waved at me; I waved back and went inside. I reset the alarm like I'm supposed to and I went back to work."

Cooper glanced at his watch; it had now been almost twenty-five minutes since he had seen them. They could be anywhere. He demanded that they open the back door and the manager complied. Naturally, the girls were nowhere in sight.

He circled back to the front of the restaurant, hoping that they were back at the car, but no such luck. Cursing, he went to the back of the Subway again and scanned the neighborhood. There were a lot of small businesses and apartment buildings; the kids could be anywhere. He rubbed the back of his neck; after almost 18 months on the run and finally getting the little one broken in, he loses them in a fucking Subway of all places.

He walked across the blacktop towards the sidewalk and tried to think. What would Abby do? Where would she take Maddie? Abby had been complaining earlier that Maddie was bleeding. Of course, she was bleeding; she'd had her cherry popped the night before. That was normal and he'd told the kid so. Abby had seemed upset about the amount of blood, but he had quickly shut her up.

But what if Maddie was still been bleeding and Abby saw it while they were in the bathroom? Abby was a worrier, just like her damn mother; she probably got all wound up by a little bit of blood and wanted to do something about it. But what? Where would Abby take her sister? He scanned the surroundings again and that's when he noticed it. The big blue 'H' sign that signified a hospital was nearby.

He reached in his pocket for the comforting feel of his switchblade. If his instincts were right, the kid had taken her sister to the hospital about the bleeding. What should he do now? Go after them and risk a scene that might bring the cops? Or should he just take off and find some new little girls elsewhere?

His mind was made up in a minute. These were _his_ little girls, his own babies, and he wasn't going to abandon them. Hell, he had just broken Maddie in; she had three or four years left before she started sprouting breasts and becoming less desirable in his eyes. Abby was budding now and that's why he figured that it was time to move on to her sister. If he could just snatch Maddie, he'd leave Abby behind.

He gripped his knife as he circled back around to the front of the Subway. He'd drive over to the Emergency Room of that hospital and he'd snatch Maddie at least, if he couldn't grab them both. If he did manage to get them both, Abby was in big trouble when he got his hands on her.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

By the time that the two doctors reached room six, Cameron had filled Cuddy in on everything that had happened that day. Cuddy understood the urgency of the situation, but was certainly glad that the mother had given permission for further treatment and that the police were involved.

"You know you can't treat kids without the parents' permission unless it's life threatening."

Cameron shrugged: "Well, she _was_ bleeding. I could make an argument about the seriousness of _that_, but it was Issy who seemed to figure out the whole story before the girl even said a word about it."

Cuddy shook her head. "She lives with House; maybe she's picked up some of his intuitive diagnostic traits."

Cameron laughed: "That's kinda scary, when you think about it. Issy is nothing like House. She has a pleasant personality and is a very hard worker."

They opened the door and found that Issy had seated herself on the exam table. Maddie was in her lap, still clutching her teddy bear and Abby was sitting next to her. The children were listening to Issy tell a story that seemed to be about a little boy named Milo and a dog named Tock.

Cuddy muttered: "Yeah, nothing like House."

The girls stiffened when the two doctors walked into the room. Issy hastened to reassure them: "That's Dr. Cuddy. She's our boss and she's very nice."

Cuddy smiled at them: "Hi girls. Dr Cameron and I talked to your Mom and she is going to fly out here as soon as she can. In the meantime, she wants us to take care of you. I just need to ask you something. Your Mom faxed me a picture of your Dad; I need to know if this is what he looks like now or if he has a beard or different hair color."

She turned the paper around so that Abby could see the photo. The child shrank against Issy as she stared at the photo. "He looks a little different now. He had a little beard, just here."

She pointed to her chin.

Cuddy asked: "He has a goatee?"

Abby shrugged: "What's that?"

Issy pulled out a pen and handed it to Abby. "Here, sweetie. Show Dr. Cuddy what his beard looks like. You can color on the picture."

The girl drew a moustache and goatee on the picture. When she was finished, Cuddy took the picture, made twenty photocopies and handed it out to her staff again. "Page security and then me if he shows up. Do not try to apprehend him. Just put the alert out."

**(A/N: You've heard of Code Blue for Cardiac Arrest. Every hospital also has a security code for a violent situation. The code varies from place to place, and the code I'm using here was the code at a former place of employment. When 'Mr. Gray' was announced over the loud speaker, every able-bodied male was expected to head to that area to help contain the situation.)**


	49. Chapter 49

Chapter 49

Kenneth Wayne Cooper considered his options as he drove to the hospital. He wanted this to be a quick in-and-out, but it just depended on how easily he could find his kids. He started to park in a no-parking zone, but then luck was on his side and someone pulled out of a space in the 'ER parking only' designated lot. The parking spot was fairly close to the door and Cooper backed the car into the spot for a quick getaway.

From behind the windshield, he observed the ER entrance for a few moments. No one questioned the people as they walked in and out of the waiting area, but he wondered what it was like on the inside. There was only one way to find out. Grabbing the bill of his ball cap, he tugged it lower on his forehead as he strolled into the ER waiting area.

Cooper quickly scanned the room, but there was no sign of the girls. There were two rows of chairs to the left filled with people, presumably waiting for their names to be called. A set of double-doors undoubtedly led to the inner workings of the ER, but it was guarded by a rent-a-cop. To the right of the doors were three glass-fronted booths staffed by clerks who were keying information into the computer and passing out clipboards. That had to be the check-in desk. To the right of the intake booths, was a hallway leading to another set of double doors, marked 'employees only' and then another waiting area, again with a double row of chairs, but only a few people were sitting there. He wondered if the girls had talked to one of the clerks or to the rent-a-cop; how else could they have gotten inside? Maybe he was on the wrong tangent and the girls were not here at all, but his gut told him that they were.

He eased over to the waiting area on the right hand side of the room, keeping an eye on that 'employees only' door. That might be a way into the ER without having to go past the security guard, but how to sneak through those doors unnoticed? The doors were an automatic type that swung open only by flashing an identity card at the badge reader.

Again luck was with him. A janitor dressed in khaki coveralls entered the waiting area through those doors. Perfect. No one ever noticed the cleaning staff; they were practically invisible. Earbuds in place, the man whistled along with a tune on his I-Pod as he took out a ring of keys and unlocked a small closet. Cooper glanced around and, after ascertaining that no one was paying attention to him, made his move while the janitor was pulling a wheeled cart containing cleaning supplies out of the closet. With the music playing loudly in his ears, the janitor never heard Cooper sneak up behind him and push him into the closet.

The man tripped over a bottle of cleaning solvent and went down hard on one knee. "What the hell?"

Cooper pulled the door shut behind him. When the janitor turned to see who had pushed him, Cooper landed a right hook to his jaw that knocked the man out cold.

Quickly he stripped the khaki coveralls off of the man and then bound his hands together with duct tape. He slapped a piece of tape over the guy's mouth to keep him from screaming for help when he woke up. Cooper pulled the coveralls on over his own clothes, making sure that he had the janitor's keys and ID badge. He moved his switchblade to an easily accessible pocket on the coveralls. Just for kicks, Cooper grabbed the I-Pod too.

With earbuds in place, but the music turned off, Cooper eased back out into the hallway. It was quiet; no one seemed to have noticed what had happened to the janitor. He swiped the janitor's ID badge over the security panel and the double doors swung open. His luck was holding. He pushed the cleaning cart through the doors and started the search for his daughters.

+++ HOUSE MD ++++

Chase had received his page and was walking towards room six just as Cuddy was heading back after distributing the new flyers. She gave him a quick synopsis; Chase clenched his jaw and hissed: "Bastard!"

Cuddy replied: "Save it for later; we gotta take care of the kids now. The little one seems to be bleeding quite a lot and we'll going to have to sedate her just to do an exam. Do you want to do it down here or take her up to the O.R.?"

Before Chase could reply, Cameron slipped out of the room and joined the two doctors in the hallway. "Their mom just called back on Issy's cell. She's on her way to the airport with the detective in charge of the case. Their flight is leaving in about thirty minutes and should arrive in Philadelphia at 4:45PM."

Cuddy raised her eyebrows: "That was fast."

Cameron shrugged: "Her daughters have been missing for 18 months; she's not going to waste any time getting here. Plus I'm sure that the detective pulled some strings to get them here that quickly. The girls calmed down quite a bit while talking to their mom, but I'm sure that we will still have to sedate Maddie to do the exam."

Cuddy addressed Chase again: "So, down here or in the O.R.?"

Chase considered: "We could sedate her with some IV Ativan and do the exam. If the tear is not too bad, I could repair it here. If it's worse than we think, we'll transport her upstairs."

Cuddy nodded: "OK, let's get started. The cops should be here any minute and then we won't have to worry about their dad showing up."

+++ HOUSE MD ++++++

It's not too hard for a man with a broom to move around largely unnoticed. Cooper swept his way around the ER, peeking behind curtains as he searched for the girls. He sensed a heightened alertness amongst the staff, but no one paid him any mind. Several security guards were strolling around in the ER, holding a flyer in their hands. As Cooper swept his way around the nursing station, he stole a glance at one of the papers that was lying on the desk.

_Damn!_ It was a copy of his 'wanted' poster and someone had drawn in his goatee. He had purposefully grown the damn thing as an attempt to disguise his appearance. No one back in Missouri knew what he looked like now. Only Abby or Maddie could have done that. This was proof that the girls were definitely here.

As quickly as he could, without attracting attention to himself, he swept his way around the curtained areas, peeking into every one of them, but finding no sign of his girls. They must be hidden in one of the exam rooms that had doors.

As he continued to sweep, he observed the rooms. Three of them had their doors standing open so he quickly eliminated them. An elderly couple was exiting exam room four and a teenager on crutches with parents in tow was entering exam room five, so those rooms were eliminated. His search was narrowing, but not quickly enough for his liking.

Suddenly he noticed a lot of activity around exam room six. A dark-haired woman with a humongous set of hooters on display was having a heated discussion with a blonde male dressed in surgeon's scrubs. Then a younger blonde woman in pale pink scrubs slipped out of the room and joined in the conversation. That blonde was pretty hot. She looked way too young to be a doctor and compared to the brunette, she had no chest at all. Cooper liked that in a woman. He briefly wondered if he could snatch her along with the girls, but he put that thought aside to focus of getting his girls and getting the hell out of here.

+++ HOUSE MD +++++

The girls were still sitting on the exam table with Issy when the three doctors walked back into the room. Maddie immediately cowered at the sight of the male doctor and started to cry.

Issy rushed to comfort her. "It's OK. That's Dr. Chase; he's really nice and I bet you'll like listening to him talk."

Chase squatted down beside the table so that he was at Maddie's eye level. Turning his accent on full-force, he said: "Hello, there. And who is the patient? This little bear here? What seems to be the problem with him, Dr. Maddie?"

Maddie actually gave him a small smile so he continued chatting to her. "Does he need some medicine? Well, we can fix him right up. Dr. Cameron, could you please hand me that syringe?"

Cameron handed Chase an empty syringe and he pretended to give the bear an injection. Then he pulled out his stethoscope and pretended to listen to the bear's heartbeat. "I think he's all better. Now I hear you have a little boo-boo that needs fixing too. How about I give you some medicine and make you all better?"

Maddie looked at her sister; Abby nodded. "Mom said it was OK for the doctors to give you some medicine, remember, Maddie? They are going to give you some medicine and then your pee-pee won't hurt any more."

Maddie looked solemnly at her sister for a moment and then nodded: "OK."

Chase smiled at the small child. "That's great, Maddie. Now, if Nurse Issy will assist, let's have you lay back on the table and Dr. Cameron will get your medicine ready."

Issy helped the child settle onto her back on the exam table. Abby moved to the head of the table and stroked Maddie's hair, whispering: "You'll be OK in a little while and Mom will be here soon."

Maddie whispered back: "We can go home?"

Abby nodded. "Mommy's going to take us home. We won't have to sleep in motels with Dad anymore."

The adult women in the room were close to tears and even Chase had to clear his throat. "Dr. Cameron, could you pull up 0.5 mg of Ativan and have another 0.5 mg handy. Issy, if you would get a bag of saline for Maddie's IV?"

Issy went to the cabinet but the shelf for the IV bags was empty. "I need to go next door to get a bag of saline, Dr. Chase. I'll be right back."

+++ HOUSE MD +++++

Kenneth Wayne Cooper swept up and down the hallway surrounding exam room six, waiting for the door to open again. He was almost sure that it was the location where these assholes were hiding his kids. Once he knew that his kids were inside, he could make his move. He wasn't quite sure how to snatch the girls without creating a big scene, but he knew that something would come to him.

It was five minutes before the door opened again. This time a nurse in blue scrubs exited and quickly pulled the door closed behind her. She hadn't been fast enough; Cooper managed to get a glimpse into the room and was positive that he had seen Abby. Maddie had to be there too; Abby was such a mother hen that there was no way she would leave her sister alone.

Before he could formulate a plan on how to snatch them, the nurse was already heading back, an IV bag in one hand. A voice in his head told him that she was the way in. He dropped the broom, pulled the switchblade out of his pocket, and walked up behind Issy just as she was about to open the door. The knife blade was at her throat before she realized what was happening.

Cooper hissed in her ear: "Open the door and no one gets hurt."

Issy stood shock-still, a wave of panic taking over her body. Who was this man and why did he have a knife at her throat? Then the light bulb went on in her head. _Oh, no. It's him! _

Annoyed at what he perceived were delaying tactics; Cooper pressed the blade more forcefully against her skin.

"You speak English, bitch? I said, open the door and no one gets hurt."

"OK, OK."

Issy didn't want to open the door, but she had no choice. Slowly she turned the knob and the two of them stepped into the room, Cooper shielding himself behind Issy.

Without looking up, Chase said: "Oh, good, you're back with the IV. We're all ready to begin. If you would just."

Without moving the knife, Cooper took a half-step out from behind Issy and growled: "You ain't doing anything to my little girl. Get your hands off of her and step away from the table, or this bitch gets it in the throat."

Abby screamed and then promptly covered her mouth with her hands. Maddie trembled with fear, tears streaming out of her eyes. The three doctors stared wide-eyed at the knife-welding intruder and then slowly backed away from the exam table.

Abby pleaded: "Dad, please don't hurt Issy. It's not her fault. It's all my fault."

"You're damn right it's your fault and you're in a lot of trouble, girl. What the hell were you thinking running away from me like that?"

"Maddie was bleeding so much and it hurt when she peed so I thought she needed to see a doctor."

In a sarcastic tone, he replied: "_You thought she needed a doctor?_ Well, who died and made you boss? Maddie, get off that table right now. We're leaving."

Maddie whimpered and sat up. Moving at a snail's pace, she inched her way to the edge of the exam table.

Her slowness infuriated her father. "Move it! If you're not off that table in two seconds, I'm going to throw that damn bear of yours out the car window."

The small child starting crying in earnest now, but she picked up her pace as she slid to the edge of the table.

Cameron burst out: "You can't take her out of here. She's bleeding badly. She needs stitches."

Cooper pressed the blade more firmly into Issy's skin, drawing a few drops of blood. "She'll be fine, but this one here will need a lot more than stitches if you don't get out of my way and let us leave. Where're your damn clothes, Maddie?"

The child had managed to climb off the table, but she was still wearing only a hospital gown as Cameron had bagged her clothes for evidence. In a small voice, she answered: "I don't know."

"Screw it, you can just wear that stupid gown for now. Abby, take your sister's hand and follow me. We're leaving and taking this nice nurse with us."

Cameron cried out: "NO!"

Cooper looked her body up and down in a lewd fashion: "You wanna take her place? I wouldn't mind if you did. You're more my type anyway. I like women with tiny tits."

Cameron's eyes grew wide and her mouth dropped open.

He let out a harsh laugh. "I'll take that as a 'no'. Pity, I could have some fun with you and then if Maddie keeps bleeding, you could stitch her up."

Turning to the girls, he growled: "Let's go. Abby, hold your sister with one hand and put the other hand on the back of my belt. We're going to be a little choo-choo train as we leave here and Issy's the engine. Lead on, sweet cheeks, we're all going on a nice long ride.

Everyone froze as the little group inched their way into the main room of the ER. Jaws dropped, eyes widened, but no one moved, afraid to set off the man with the knife at Issy's throat. Chase, Cameron and Cuddy followed the group at a respectful distance.

Cuddy's mind was awhirl. _How could she stop him without getting Issy killed? Where were the cops? They should have been here by now. If anything happens to Issy, House will go berserk._ She had to figure out a way to stall Cooper until the police got here.

Cuddy glanced frantically around until she made eye contact with Gloria, an older Hispanic nurse who had worked the ER for twenty-five years. There wasn't much that Gloria had not seen in her tenure and this certainly wasn't the first time that someone had wielded a knife in front of her. Cuddy gave Gloria a slight nod and the nurse returned the gesture. Moving slowly to not attract attention to herself, Gloria reached for the button under her desk and activated the alarm.

_Mr. Gray to the ER STAT. Mr. Gray to the ER STAT. Mr. Gray to the ER STAT. _

At the loud announcement, Cooper looked around and then hissed in Issy's ear. "What the hell was that?"

Issy swallowed hard and said: "They are just paging someone to the ER. Probably a family member of someone who's crashing."

Cooper was still suspicious but continued inching his way towards the door. Maddie was still sniveling behind him and it was driving him nuts. Once they made a clean get-away, he was really going to give her something to cry about. Abby was in deep shit; he was going to beat her so badly that she wouldn't be able to sit down for a month, or maybe he would come up with something else, something that she would never forget. But that would also have to wait until they found a place to hole up.

They were still thirty feet from the exit when four security guards blocked their path. The men had no weapons other than billy clubs and there wasn't much that they could do against a man with a knife, but the goal was to try to stall him until the police got here.

The oldest one stepped forward, hands held out in a placating manner: "Sir, please, just put the knife down and let her go. She's just a nursing student here, just a young kid. You don't want to hurt her."

"I'll hurt her if you don't get out of my way, Gramps."

"Sir, please, you don't really want to hurt anyone. You're upset because your little girl is hurt. We understand but there's no reason to take it out on this young lady."

Ice water flowed in Cooper's veins. "I don't need a reason, Gramps."

He pressed the knife firmly against Issy's throat and cut her. It wasn't a life-threatening cut, but it was deep enough to cause the blood to run freely down her neck and onto her scrub top.

Issy felt the white-hot burn as the knife cut her and bit her lip to suppress a cry of pain. She was terrified but she think of nothing to do to get away from this man.

Cooper screamed at the guards. "Now, back off! Or the bitch really gets it."

The guards stepped back. Cooper pushed Issy forward and she lurched towards the exit. He was moving at a faster pace now and the children could barely keep up. Maddie tripped over her long gown and fell down. As she cried from the impact, Abby let go of her father's belt and bent down to help her.

Cooper and Issy were almost to the exit before he realized that the children had fallen behind. "Let's go! Now!"

Abby tried to make Maddie get up but the child was crying hysterically and refused to budge. One of the nurses ran to their aid and two of the security guards blocked the path between the children and their father.

Suddenly the wail of sirens could be heard. Cuddy breathed a sigh of relief; the police were almost here. She could only hope that they would be in time before anyone got seriously hurt or killed.

Cooper had to make a split decision. It was either fight his way through all these people to grab his kids or escape now with this nurse as a hostage. One thing he knew for sure: he didn't want to get caught by the cops. He knew what happened to pedophiles in prison and that was not happening to him.

He hated to lose the girls, but his own ass was more important. He'd just have to start over again. He'd done it before and he could do it again. Decision made, he shoved Issy towards the door before anyone could stop him.

Cooper dragged Issy to his car and tossed her in from the drivers' side. He peeled out of the parking lot just as the first police car barreled into the ER driveway. As he glanced in his rear view mirror, he could see the fucking security guards screaming at the police to follow him and he put the pedal to the metal. They weren't going to take him alive.

+++ HOUSE MD +++++

House and Wilson were in the doctor's lounge playing foosball when the security alert went out.

_Mr. Gray to the ER STAT. Mr. Gray to the ER STAT. Mr. Gray to the ER STAT._

House paused for a moment, allowing Wilson to sink a goal and he scowled. "What do you think that's all about?"

Wilson shrugged as he placed the ball in the center of the field again. "Probably some crackhead going psycho, you know, the usual."

He waited for House to grab the handles again and when he didn't, Wilson said: "House, the ER is a big place. Issy is most likely not in the middle of it. And even if she is, you are going to have to get used to your girlfriend being in such a potentially volatile environment. Cameron has learned to handle it; Issy will too."

House debated with himself for a moment and then grabbed his cane: "I'm going down there."

Wilson rolled his eyes: "And what are _you_ going to do with a 300 pound meth head going psycho that the security guards can't do? Beat him over the head with your cane?"

The look he gave Wilson was one of icy steel. "If my girl is in the middle of it, you're damn straight I will."

House limped out of the lounge; Wilson let out a loud sigh and hurried after him. He crossed his fingers that Issy was on a break or something and nowhere near the commotion.


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50**

The ER was pandemonium when the two doctors arrived. People were yelling; nurses were crying. Members of the Princeton Police Force were talking to the hospital's security staff. House could see the other members of his team who had undoubtedly answered the _'Mr. Gray'_ alert. Kutner could never resist responding to one of those and he would drag the others along with him. House scanned the room but couldn't see Issy anywhere. An uneasy feeling took hold in the pit of his stomach.

As he walked through the crowded room, he realized that people were giving him strange sympathetic looks but then turning away before he could meet their eye. The uneasy feeling grew stronger.

He paused as he passed the nursing station. Gloria, one of the old-timers who had seen everything at least ten times, was actually weeping. Some really bad shit must have gone down here for that tough old broad to cry. The uneasy feeling crept up his gastrointestinal tract and relocated itself in his throat, creating a large lump. He tried to swallow it down, but it remained lodged in a most uncomfortable manner.

_Where the hell was Issy?_

His steps faltered when he passed Cameron sobbing her heart out in Chase's arms. Cameron was emotional, but not _this _emotional. House and Wilson exchanged puzzled looks and then House again scanned the room in search of his girlfriend.

He spotted Cuddy in a far corner of the room speaking to a man in a rumpled navy suit that screamed 'plainclothes police detective'. With Wilson dogging his heels, he headed in her direction, hoping that the Dean would have some answers for him.

Cuddy saw him coming and looked away. She didn't want to face him; she didn't want to be the one to give him the awful news.

House noticed her reaction and grabbed her by the shoulder, forcing her to face him. "What the _hell_ happened down here? _Gloria_ is crying, for Christ's sake. And I can't find Issy. Have you seen her?"

Cuddy opened her mouth but no words would come out. She couldn't do it; she couldn't be the one to tell him what had happened.

The detective moved to stand in front of Cuddy and asked: "And who are you and what is your relationship to Isabelle Walker?"

House growled: "I'm Doctor Gregory House and Isabelle Walker is my girlfriend. You wanna tell me what the hell is going on around here?"

The detective replied in a calm tone: "There's been an incident. Why don't we go somewhere a little more quiet to talk?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After leaving instructions for Cameron and Chase to take care of the girls, Cuddy led the way to her office.

Once they arrived, Cuddy seated herself behind her desk. She needed the physical and psychological barrier between herself and House's wrath. Issy's kidnapping wasn't her fault and she could think of nothing that she could have done differently to prevent it, but she still couldn't help feeling responsible.

The detective took notes in his laptop as Cuddy gave him a concise summary of the events that had unfolded over the last hour.

"That guy kidnapped his own daughters 18 months ago and has been on the run ever since. He's been raping the older girl all this time and last night he raped the little one for the first time. She was bleeding so much from the attack that her older sister wanted to bring her to a doctor. They managed to sneak away from their father while he was preoccupied at Subway. Issy is the one who found them outside the ER door and somehow managed to figure out exactly what the situation was before the children said anything. She was absolutely amazing."

Cuddy paused and stared down at her lap. She was close to tears but didn't want anyone to see them.

House gripped his cane so tightly that his knuckles turned white. Given her past history, it wasn't surprising to him that Issy had figured it out.

The detective prompted Cuddy to go on: "So the girls ended up here, then what happened?"

Cuddy ran through the rest of the events: trying to examine Maddie, the phone call to the girls' mother and the decision to sedate the young girl to do the exam. "Issy ran out of the room to grab a bag of saline. When she came back, he was behind her with a knife at her throat. We tried to stall him to give the police time to get here, but he took off just minutes before you came."

House was having difficulty wrapping his mind around the fact that Issy, _his girlfriend_, had been kidnapped by a knife-wielding pedophile in the middle of a busy ER.

He screamed at Cuddy: "How did this happen? How the hell did this maniac get past security and into the ER?"

The Dean sighed deeply: "We're still trying to figure that out. He was wearing one of the janitor's uniforms so we are checking to see if anyone is missing."

"That's not fucking good enough. I want answers now."

Wilson laid a hand on House's shoulder in an attempt to calm him, but House just shook him off. Turning to the detective, House said: "And what the hell are you doing _here_? That bastard is out there with my girlfriend. Shouldn't you be chasing him and trying to get her back?"

"My colleagues are doing just that. My job is to find out what happened here and get statements."

House snarled: "_Statements_ are not going to get her back."

"That's my job at the moment, Dr. House. Other officers are out there chasing them down."

"She better be in one piece when you find her."

The detective looked him in the eye and said: "I sincerely hope so."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy shifted uneasily in the passenger seat. Biting her lip to try to stop the trembling, she glanced around for a weapon. Finding nothing on the seat or the floor, her eyes shifted to the door. Perhaps he would slow down enough or get stopped at a traffic light and she could escape. Her heart sank when she realized that the door handle was missing. There was no way that she could open the door from her side and the car was a coupe so there were no back doors. Unless she could figure out a way to get past him, Issy was trapped in the car.

Cooper drove like a mad man; running lights, speeding around corners at 60 MPH. He nearly hit two cars and a man crossing the street, but he paid them no mind. His total focus was on losing the cops and getting out of Princeton.

Up ahead was an industrial area of town. Cooper took several quick turns and then backtracked north. He swerved behind a row of warehouses and ducked down an alleyway between them. Three more quick turns and he saw a sign directing him to Route 206. He headed in that direction and after a few minutes, noticed that the sounds of the sirens seemed to be growing fainter. A quick glance in the rear view mirror put a smile on his face.

"We lost them, bitch. You're all mine, now."

Issy trembled with fear. She couldn't see how she was going to get out of this situation. Trying her best to hide her fear, she stuck her hands into her pockets so that he wouldn't see them trembling and her left hand touched her cell phone. An idea formed in her head and she carefully ran her fingers over the keys, locating the ones that she needed. Glad that she had not yet upgraded to a touchscreen type of phone, she softly pressed the keys that she needed and hoped for the best.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The detective yelled into the radio: "What do you mean, you lost them?"

House closed his eyes and ran his left hand over his face. _Imbeciles_. Where was Jack Bauer when you needed him?

The detective listened for a few more minutes and then said: "Keep me updated. I want to hear from you every 15 minutes, if not sooner."

He clicked a few keys on his laptop and then turned to address the group: "Cooper circled behind some warehouses and managed to slip away, but we'll find him. There's an APB out for the car. Everyone in the state of New Jersey is looking for him."

House snarled: "Yeah, so what? This guy has been on the run for 18 months. He's not stupid; he knows how to fly under the radar."

"We're doing everything we can. The FBI is on the way; helicopters are searching the freeways."

Wilson said softly: "Should we ask the kids where he might go?"

Cuddy shook her head: "There's no point. The older girl said that they've been staying in different motels every night since they left St. Louis."

House ranted: "How has he been living all this time? They've been on the run; he hasn't had a job. Can you follow the money trail?"

The detective replied: "That's going to take some time and it isn't going to help us find them right now."

Suddenly House's cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the caller ID. "It's Issy!"

House started to flip open the phone but the detective put his hand out, momentarily stopping him. "Answer it but don't say anything just yet. She may be trying to open the line and signal us."

Against his instincts, House complied with the detective's instructions. He opened the phone and then hit speaker so everyone could hear what was happening.

After a moment, Issy's voice came through the tinny speaker. "Look, we've lost the cops. You don't need a hostage anymore. Why don't you just stop here on the side of Route 206 and let me go? I won't tell the cops anything like which direction you're heading. I'll tell 'em the opposite, that you were heading north when you let me out."

The detective whispered in an urgent tone into his radio and then tapped some keys on the laptop. House looked over his shoulder and saw that he was mapping out Route 206.

Her kidnapper snarled: "Shut up bitch and let me think."

"OK, OK, I'm just saying. Wait. Why are you getting on I-95? Where are we going? Are we going to Trenton?"

"No, we're not going to fucking Trenton. And I told you to shut up."

Again the detective mumbled into his radio and hit more keys on his laptop.

For a few minutes, all they could hear was road noises and then Issy piped up again. "The next exit is for the Trenton Airport. Are we going to the airport?"

The next noise that they heard sounded like a slap. "I told you to fucking shut up."

Issy whimpered: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just nervous and I talk when I'm nervous."

"You fucking should be, you bitch. You and those other assholes at the hospital made me lose my girls and now you're gonna pay."

House hissed at the detective: "Do something!"

"I am. I'm sending officers to the area following her directions."

House covered his face with his hands. He wasn't sure how much more of this he was going to be able to listen to.

More road sounds and then a mumbled: "Bear Tavern Road. Weird name."

Two minutes later: "West Upper Ferry Road."

The kidnapper screamed: "I've told you for the last time. Shut up, bitch."

They heard another slap. Cuddy put her hands over her face; Wilson squeezed her shoulder as a small measure of comfort. House gripped his cane so tightly that his hand hurt.

After a few minutes of silence, they heard Issy again. "I'm sorry, I'm just scared."

"You think you're scared now? Wait until we get there."

Issy's voice sounded somewhat more alarmed: "Get where?"

His tone was deathly calm. "You'll see."

A couple more minutes passed in silence and then Issy spoke again. "Why are we stopping here? This motel looks abandoned."

"All the better for me, bitch. I can have my fun with you and no one will be able to hear you scream."

Issy's voice went up several pitches. "What do you mean, your fun? Just leave me here and get back on I-95. You can be in Pennsylvania in no time. The cops won't follow you across state lines."

"That's what you fucking think. When the charge is kidnapping, state lines don't mean shit. You made me lose my little angels, and now you're gonna pay. When I get done with you, even your mama won't be able to ID your body."

There was a sound of a car door opening and then slamming. Issy's panicked voice came on the line again: "The Oasis, abandoned motel on Sunset Avenue near the Trenton Airport. Oh, God, Greg, I hope you're getting this. Here he comes; I'm hanging up. I don't want you to hear anything else. I love you."

And just like that, the connection broke. House let out a deep guttural scream and slammed his cane down on the desk. _She loved him?_ She loved him and _this_ is how he hears the words for the first time, as she is going to her probable death at the hands of a dangerous pedophile?

He roared: "Get your ass moving! You heard him; he's going to kill her."

The detective was keyed a few more strokes into his laptop as he spoke into his radio. "All units approach the Oasis motel on Sunset Avenue. No sirens. Block all methods of escape but stay out of sight. Suspect is armed and dangerous and has a female hostage. I'm on my way, but don't wait for me. When everyone is in place, move in."

As soon as he finished keying in the last bit of information, he grabbed his laptop and headed for the door. Over his shoulder, he yelled back at the room: "I'll be in touch as soon as I can."

+++ HOUSE MD ++ HOUSE MD ++++

Once the detective was gone, the room went quiet. Anxious to be away from any sympathetic looks or remarks, House scooped up his phone and limped hurriedly out of the room. As usual, Wilson dogged his heels.

They entered an empty elevator together and House turned to snarl at Wilson. "Leave me alone. I don't need your goddamn sympathy."

When the elevator arrived at the fourth floor, House stalked into his office and opened the bottom right hand drawer. The bottle of Maker's Mark was half full and he took a quick gulp straight out of the bottle before pouring a couple of shots into his empty coffee mug. When he looked up, Wilson was standing there with his own mug. House grumbled but poured a couple of fingers into Wilson's mug too.

House leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. After all of these years, he had finally allowed himself to get close to a woman again. Issy was everything he could possibly want; she was beautiful, smart, and sexy. She had a great sense of humor, took a sweet childlike delight in the simplest things and most importantly, could put up with him. Now she had been snatched away from him. Life could be unbearably cruel. Hadn't he put up with enough crap in his life already? Didn't he deserve a little happiness? Or was it just his lot in life to be miserable?

Wilson said quietly: "It was really smart of her to use her phone that way."

House nodded: "She's a smart girl, just not quite smart enough to not get grabbed."

"The police will find her."

House shook his head: "Not in time. This bastard wants to make her pay and he's going to."

He couldn't finish his thought and took a big gulp of bourbon, savoring the burn as it went down his throat. He didn't want to think about what could be happening to Issy right at this very moment so he directed his anger at the most convenient place.

As House set the mug down, he snarled: "This is all your fault. If it weren't for you and your fucking bet, this would have never happened."

Wilson replied in an all-knowing voice: "Yes, of course, I should have foreseen that your girlfriend would get kidnapped when we made that bet."

"If I hadn't gotten involved with her."

Wilson interrupted: "Then you wouldn't be sitting here right now, wondering what the fuck is happening to the woman you love. Our bet did not get Issy kidnapped, House. Your relationship with her did not get her kidnapped. That son-of-a-bitch pedophile is the reason. Issy just happened to be the one who found those kids. She _saved_ them, House. Cuddy said it was like Issy took one look at those kids and knew exactly what was going on."

House mumbled: "Of course, she did. She knows the signs."

Wilson blinked at him and said: "What are you talking about?"

House merely shook his head. The two men sat in silence for a few minutes before House said in a weary tone: "I owe you five grand."

Wilson sputtered at the abrupt change of subject: "What are you talking about? You're talking about the bet _now?_ What for? You won fair and square."

"No, I didn't. You were set up. It just wasn't supposed to turn out this way. I wasn't supposed to fall in love in her."

Wilson shook his head: "The cliff notes aren't doing it for me. Can you give me the unedited version?"

House took him back to the beginning where it all started. Wilson's jaw dropped when he heard that House had actually met Issy in a strip club instead of at PPTH as he had originally been told. He became angry when he realized that House had duped him all this time, but his anger subsided when House confessed to falling in love with her. He pulled the box out of his pocket and showed the necklace to Wilson.

"Her birthday's tomorrow. I was going to tell her that the deal was over and had been over in my mind for months. I was going to tell her."

He drained his mug and then upended the bottle to pour the remainder into his mug.

Wilson finished the sentence for him. "You were going to tell her that you loved her."

When House didn't answer, Wilson pressed on: "She doesn't know?"

A headshake was his only answer.

They sat there lost in thought, and then Wilson asked: "Did you know that she loved you?"

House answered slowly: "Not until that phone call. Now I know, and it's too late."

"It's not too late. The police are on their way. They will get to her."

"Not in time."

Wilson knew better than to keep throwing words of comfort at his friend. Until there was proof that Issy had been rescued, House was emotionally preparing himself for the worst. He needed a distraction until they heard from the police. Wilson pondered for a moment and then said: "What did you mean when you said that Issy knew the signs?"

House drained the last of his bourbon, leaned his head against the back of the chair and closed his eyes. "Takes one to know one."

"What do you mean?"

"A victim can often spot another victim, similar body language, a sixth sense, something, I don't know, but I've seen it happen before."

Wilson stared at him for a moment, trying to fit the pieces together in his head. "Are you saying that Issy was victimized as a child?"

House snorted: "Such a politically correct term. No. Issy was _raped_ as a child. Her stepfather _raped_ her for years until, one day, he decided that he was going to whore her out to the neighborhood and then she ran away. She lived on the streets of New York City for a couple of years and then started dancing. But she wanted out of that kind of life, so she looked for something else and fell into nursing. She kept dancing to support herself while she was in school."

He covered his face with his hands. "Jesus, she was so looking forward to graduating. All she wanted was a normal job, a little home and a dog. That's all she talked about. I asked her once if that was really _all_ she wanted. Didn't she want to get married and have kids like most women? You know what she said to me?"

Wilson shook his head. "I can't imagine."

"She said, and I quote: _'who'd marry a whore like me?'_ I tried to tell her that she wasn't a whore, if anything she was an ex-whore, but she wouldn't believe me. And, of course, I was _paying_ her to be my girlfriend so that I could win your bet, so that didn't help my argument any."

"Why did you keep the bet going once you realized how you felt about her?"

"I wanted to stop it. I just didn't know how she would take it. Issy's very proud and I didn't know if I stopped the deal, if she would let me just support her until she finished school. So I figured, what's a little longer? I was going to wait until graduation, but then I decided to tell her on her birthday and give her this necklace. Cheesy, huh?"

"It's not cheesy, and Issy will love it. You'll get the chance to give it to her. Just give the police some time."

House glanced at his watch and shuddered: "How much time? And what shape will she be in when they find her?"

Wilson had no answer; the two men sat with their own thoughts, one hoping for the best and the other expecting the worst.


	51. Chapter 51

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting. Work and bad weather have kept me off the computer. Thank you for all your lovely reviews and I will answer them ASAP! **

**The roller coaster ride continues,,, hold on tightly. **

**Chapter 51**

It was approximately two hours after the detective had dashed off when the men heard the distinctive sound of Cuddy's heels walking briskly towards them. She flung the door open so hard that it hit the wall.

Cuddy was out of breath from her mad dash up from the ER. "The police have her."

The men jumped up and both started talking at once.

Wilson exclaimed: "How is she?"

House asked: "Is she alive?"

Cuddy held up both hands in a silent plea to give her a moment. When she had caught her breath, she answered: "She's alive, but she's hurt. They are bringing her here via ambulance and she should be here in a few minutes. The police shot him; he's dead."

House muttered: "Fuck, I wanted to kill him myself."

Then in a louder voice, he asked: "How badly is she hurt?"

Cuddy looked away: "I don't know for sure."

He strode rapidly around the desk and grabbed her arm. Through clenched teeth, he hissed: "You're lying. How badly is she hurt?"

She jerked her arm out of his grasp before answering: "Pretty bad, but she's still alive and that's what's important right now."

He bellowed: "EMS would have radioed the ER with her injuries; what did they say?"

"House, try to focus on the fact that she is still alive."

"Cuddy, for Christ's sake, tell me now!"

Wilson interjected: "Cuddy, come on. We're imagining the worst here. Tell us that it's not so bad."

She sighed and said: "I wish I could."

Realizing that there was no way that she could look House in the eyes and say the words, she focused on Wilson's kind face as she said: "He beat her, rather badly. Possible broken arm and ribs. She's unconscious, but her pupils are equal and responsive and she responded to painful stimuli. When they got there, her arms were curled around her head so they think she might have been protecting her head. We'll have to do a head CT but hopefully there's no serious head trauma."

She didn't say anything more; she just stared at a spot on the wall behind Wilson's head.

House persisted: "What else? There's more, isn't there?"

Wilson chimed in: "Cuddy, spill it."

She whispered: "He cut her. That knife, he had that big knife."

Wilson said: "How bad? Do we need to round up some blood donors?"

Cuddy was almost in tears: "Pretty bad."

The Dean rarely cried; now House was truly alarmed. "Tell me!"

She made a criss-cross motion on her chest. "He slashed her on the chest. The EMS said it looked like he was trying to cut her breasts off."

House felt like the breath had been knocked out of him. He staggered and fell against the desk; Wilson rushed to his side and helped to steady him.

His heart was pounding like a jackhammer. It took him a few moments to be able to speak and when he did, he spewed all of his pent-up anger on the messenger. "And you thought I should just _see_ that, without any preparation? What the fuck were you thinking?"

Tears streamed down her face. "I'm sorry. I just, I just didn't want to tell you. I feel so bad about this."

Wilson grabbed her arm. "It's not your fault; you didn't do this. When are they getting here?"

She glanced at her watch: "EMS said that the ETA was 15 minutes."

Wilson shot a glance at a stony-faced House: "We should get down there."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

It was a grim trio that rode down in the elevator together. When they arrived in the ER, House's team plus Chase and Cameron were already there.

Cuddy strode up to Chase and asked: "How are the girls?"

"As well as can be expected. I sedated Maddie to perform the exam and found a urethral laceration, which was causing the excessive bleeding and probably causing the painful urination. The laceration was deep but I think it will heal fine. There was another laceration on the posterior fornix of her vagina, but it was minor and should heal on its own. Cameron performed an internal exam on Abby who handled it like a trooper."

Cameron sighed: "Yeah, we have plenty of evidence against the bastard that I understand we won't be needing now."

Cuddy replied: "At least the girls won't be subjected to a trial and have to testify against their father. Who's with them now?"

Cameron answered: "Dr Stone from Psych is there and will stay with them until their mother arrives."

The wail of the ambulance caught their attention. The volume of the siren told House that it would arrive in less than two minutes. He closed his eyes to steel himself for what he was about to see. Then he took a deep breath, opened his eyes and barked: "Foreman! Neuro checks."

"On it."

"Chase, I want you running the team. You'll be the attending on record."

"Done."

House glanced over at Taub: "I have a feeling we'll be needing your special skills at some point, so stick around."

His eyes swept over the group. "The rest of you, either assist or get out of the way."

The siren became ear-splittingly loud and stopped the instance that the ambulance pulled into the bay. House thumped his cane against the floor and said: "Chase."

He gave the older man a nod. "Let's roll, team."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

There was bruising on her face but House was relieved to see that there were no knife wounds. Her torso, assuming that Cuddy had been given the correct information, was going to be another story and he mentally steeled himself for that.

The EMS tech rattled off her stats as they hustled the gurney into an exam room. "BP 80/50, pulse 60 and thready. Two liters of saline were given en route, but no change in BP. Breath sounds very shallow on the left, suspect broken ribs. Suspect break in left forearm so we splinted it. She was found with her arms curled around her head, so head trauma is possible, but her pupils are equal and reactive, and she's responded to painful stimuli. Multiple stab wounds on her torso, deep but clotted."

Foreman already had his penlight out and was shining it in Issy's eyes. "Did she regain consciousness at all?"

The tech replied: "No. She winced when we splinted her arm, but no other response. Not even a moan."

On the count of three, they lifted her from the EMS gurney onto the exam table. House took a position at the head of the table so that he could watch Foreman do the neuro exam. As bad as he suspected the other injuries to be, they could most likely be repaired, but brain damage was tricky. Loss of function or memory was a distinct possibility and House hoped that this would not be the case with Issy.

Foreman opened each of her eyes in turn and shined the penlight. "Pupils equal and responsive."

The neurologist then pinched her earlobe; Issy let out a low moan and flinched at the sensation. Foreman glanced at House and murmured: "Responsive to pain."

House nodded, so far, so good.

Foreman probed the left side of her head. "There's a small amount of blood. Looks like her arm took the worst of it, but we should get a head CT to be sure everything is OK."

There was a collective gasp and one high-pitched scream when the blanket was pulled back and House deliberately kept his eyes on Issy's face while mentally preparing himself to see her injuries. Slowly he turned and examined her body.

_Issy would hate this._ She would hate being sprawled out, naked and helpless in front of so many people, even if they were doctors trying to save her life. Most of the damage seemed to be on the left side of her body. She must have rolled onto her right, cradling her head in her arms to protect it from Cooper's blows. Her left side was severely bruised, as was her left arm. There was a funny dip in the left forearm, indicating a break, but at least the bone was not protruding through the skin. Finally, he forced his eyes to look at her breasts, those perfect orbs that he had so admired. The cuts that Mancini had made on them were nothing compared to what was there now. Whoever had told Cuddy that it looked like Cooper had tried to cut Issy's breasts off, had been right. The left breast had four or five deep slashes, the right only two. He must have been interrupted before he did more damage to the right one.

House had seen a lot of horrors in his medical career, but in his mind, nothing compared to this. He did his best to put on a professional persona and try to distance himself from his emotions, but his body betrayed him and he had to grip the edge of the exam table to keep from losing his balance.

A gentle hand on his shoulder pushed downward and he discovered a stool had been placed under his ass. Wilson murmured in his ear: "Sit here. Talk to her; tell her that she's safe now. She may be able to hear you."

House wasn't sure that he could do that in front of everyone, but he was grateful for the seat. He kept half an eye on the business at hand, but mostly he stared at Issy's face.

Chase was all business. "Taub, put her on 100% oxygen, non-rebreathing face mask. Kutner, grab the portable X-ray. We need to see exactly what's broken here. If she's got broken ribs, we're going to need a chest tube."

Thirteen called out: "BP's 70/40, pulse is getting weaker."

Chase growled: "Damn it. Hang a unit of O neg. Are the breast wounds still bleeding?"

Taub was swabbing the cuts with antiseptic. "No. They've mostly clotted off. She must have internal bleeding. Maybe pneumothorax from the broken ribs?"

Chase answered: "Unless she's got a broken rib stabbing right into a major blood vessel, doubtful."

They took several quick X-rays. Both of the bones in her left forearm were broken, three ribs were cracked but there was no sign of pneumothorax.

House stroked her hair gently. Everyone was busy at some task and no one was paying attention to him, so he bent and whispered in Issy's ear. "It's Greg, baby. You're safe now. Everything's going to be OK. Can you open your eyes for me? You know how much I like to see those gorgeous blue eyes of yours. You're safe, baby. Greg's here."

He was disappointed in her lack of response to his words, but perhaps it was for the best that she remain unconscious for this part of the exam.

Chase palpated her abdomen, mumbling: "We're missing something. No bruising around the umbilicus but there is some tenseness here. Put in a catheter; let's see if there's blood in her urine."

Cameron grabbed a catheter from the supply cart and approached the end of the table. She pulled the blanket down, exposing Issy's pubis and spread her legs apart. As Cameron bent over to insert the catheter, she suddenly screamed.

Chase snarled at her: "Cameron, what the fuck?"

With one hand over her mouth in an attempt to stifle her screams, Cameron pointed a shaky finger at the terrifying sight.

Chase followed the direction of her finger. He frowned, tilting his head as if the view was completely incomprehensible to him and then as the realization hit him, he yelled: "Oh, Christ! The ultrasound, quick!"

Kutner grabbed the machine and pushed it towards the table. Wilson and Cuddy took a quick look at the area; both doctors paled at the sight.

House glanced from face to face and asked: "What the fuck is going on?" Chase shook his head, quickly squirted the gel on Issy's abdomen and began running the probe. He deliberately turned the screen so that House could not view it.

House's eyes did not leave Chase's face. Whatever this was, it was bad. Finally he could take it no more. "I take it you found the source of the bleed."

Chase nodded grimly: "I'm afraid so."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

"It looks like a wooden stick of some kind, perhaps a broomstick. He penetrated her with it, ripping through her cervix and into her uterus. It seems to be lodged into the uterine wall; blood's clotted around it. I don't want to try to pull it out. I'm afraid that any movement could cause the bleeding to start again."

Staring at the horrible sight on the ultrasound monitor, House had to agree with him. "It will have to be removed surgically."

Chase looked at him: "I may not be able to save the uterus. Does she have any family, anyone to sign the consent forms? By any chance, are you her medical proxy?"

Overwhelmed with a sense of despair, House simply shook his head.

Cuddy stepped in: "House, she has no emergency contact on her school papers. Do you know of any family that we can contact?"

Reading the signs on his best friend's face, Wilson stepped in to answer for House. "Issy has no family."

The two doctors exchanged a look and then Cuddy put a sympathetic hand on House's shoulder. Gently she said: "House, you're the closest thing Issy has to family. I know you aren't her medical proxy, but you need to tell us how to proceed."

House stared down at the woman he loved. Was this how Stacy had felt, making a life or death decision without knowing the wishes of the other person? No, this was different. Stacy knew his feelings on the matter and chose to ignore them, preferring to take a safe middle-of-the-road, yet life-altering surgery to 'save his life' as opposed to letting him ride out the pain in a comatose state and recovering full use of his leg. His life had been in her hands as now Issy's was in his. He had to hope he was making the right decision. But in his medical opinion and Chase's too, Issy was going to die without this surgery.

House took a deep breath and said: "An intact uterus does her no good if she's dead. If you can save it, great. If not, yank it out."

He looked Chase squarely in the eye and said: "Just don't let her die."


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52 **

The longest day of House's life continued well into the evening as he and Wilson sat in the gallery above the operating room and watched the activity below. Cuddy had expressly forbidden him from being in the OR and he chose not to fight her on this. His diagnostic skills were not needed down there, and if the worst happened, he didn't want to be there for it. Up here, safe in the gallery, he could almost pretend that he was watching Chase operate on some stranger as opposed to the woman he loved.

They had performed a head CT before taking her into the OR. Everything looked normal, registering a collective sigh of relief amongst the team. Now they could focus on her other injuries.

Issy's ulna was fractured in two places and the radius in one, so it was decided to call in an orthopedic surgeon to reduce the fractures and splint the arm. After a few days, when the post-op swelling decreased, the arm would then be put into a cast until the bones had healed. Chase paged Dr. Lane for the Ortho consult. He was a fairly new member of the staff and had not yet had a run-in with House. Lane was surprised to see Issy on the table; he remembered the pretty nursing student from her rotation on the Ortho floor and was appalled to hear what had happened to her. He quickly agreed to the consult, and with Kutner's assistance, reset her broken arm.

The wounds on Issy's chest were so numerous that Taub scarcely knew where to begin. The thin white scars from his previous repair could barely be seen now with these new injuries. With Thirteen assisting and keeping an eye on Issy's unstable BP, Taub stitched up Issy's chest wounds as quickly as possible. A couple of them were quite deep and it took some time to close them. The job was not as pretty as Taub would have liked, but in the need for haste, he closed her up, already planning to 'beautify' her later when she was stable enough to withstand more surgery.

Chase and Foreman had the unpleasant task of dealing with Issy's most critical injury. The broomstick had penetrated through the cervix and lodged itself deeply into the uterine wall. Fortunately it had not perforated the uterus so the damage was localized to that organ. They tried to figure out a way to repair the damage, but as soon as they touched the stick, the wound began bleeding again.

Thirteen called out: "Her BP's 65/45."

Chase cursed: "Damn it. Hang another unit of blood. Foreman, try to clamp off that bleeder."

The doctors worked feverishly to try to stop the bleeding and save her uterus, but when her BP bottomed out at 55/40, Issy went into cardiac arrest. The tension in the operating room increased dramatically as they struggled to get Issy's heart beating again. House buried his face in his hands; he couldn't bear to watch the struggle taking place down below. He felt Wilson lay a comforting hand on his shoulder and for once, he did not shrug it off.

++++++ HOUSE MD +++++++++++++

_Issy looked down at her feet. She was wearing black Mary Janes and little white ankle socks. How strange, she hadn't worn such items since she was a small child. Why did she have them on now? Then she looked at her dress. It was a yellow sundress with a little duck pattern decorating the hem. She remembered owning such a dress when she was 5 years old. What was she doing in these clothes now?_

_She looked around; it was her old street back in Akron. Old Mrs. Yancey was pruning her roses in front of her white two-storied house with the gingerbread trim. Amazed that she was alive after all these years. Issy shouted 'hello' and waved but Mrs. Yancey didn't seem to hear her. _

_Issy slowly walked on down the block. Mr. Hippler was in his driveway, carefully washing his drop-top baby blue Caddy like he did every Sunday afternoon in the summer time. When she said 'hello' to him, he turned around and smiled at her. "What are you doing out all by yourself, young lady? Your daddy'll be looking for you."_

_She opened her mouth to remind him that her Daddy had left a long time ago when suddenly she saw him across the street._

"_Daddy!" _

_She screamed and ran after him. Like Old Mrs. Yancey, he didn't seem to hear her and kept walking away. Issy kept running and despite the fact that Daddy was merely walking, Issy never seemed to be able to catch up to him. When Daddy reached the corner, he turned away from her and kept walking._

"_Daddy, no! Don't go! I can't cross the street by myself. Come and get me." _

_He turned to look at her, his expression sad. He gave her a wave and started to walk away._

_Issy was in a panic. "No! Daddy! Come get me. I want to go with you. Don't leave me here all alone again. I don't want to be alone; I want to be with you."_

_He turned again, but this time he spoke: "You're not alone anymore. You have him. He will take good care of you."_

_Issy sobbed: "But I miss you Daddy. Please, please take me with you."_

_He shook his head. "No, cupcake. You can't go with me. It's not your time. Go back the way you came. Go back to him. He loves you and he'll take care of you. You'll take care of each other."_

_Her Daddy turned, walked into a bright white light and disappeared._

_Issy screamed her heart out, but he didn't come back. She picked up the hem of her dress and wept into the soft fabric. When she had finally cried herself out, she looked around again. Mrs. Yancey and Mr. Hippler had disappeared. There was no one to help her. Issy had no choice but to walk back the way that she came._

_+++++++++++ HOUSE MD ++++++++++_

They had to shock her twice before she went into sinus rhythm again. While Taub returned to stitching up Issy's chest wounds, Thirteen hung the fourth unit of O neg. Chase and Foreman returned to the bloody mess that was now Issy's uterus, but after a quick exam, Chase shook his head.

Over the microphone, Chase called out to House: "The damage is severe and the cervix is completely shot. Even if I could repair the uterus, she would never be able to sustain a pregnancy with this type of damage to her cervix."

House picked up the phone and yelled back: "Yank it then. It serves no purpose anymore. Get her off the table before she arrests again."

He slammed the phone back down and buried his face in his hands. He tried to console himself with the fact that there was no choice in the matter. The blood loss was too great and a hysterectomy was the only way to save her life. She had told him that she never planned to have kids, but she was young, plenty of time to change her mind on that subject. She'd be 26 in just a few hours, assuming that she survived the surgery. The Tiffany box containing the heart pendant was hidden away in the top drawer of his desk. He intended to give it to her tomorrow, assuming that she regained consciousness by then.

When the surgery was over, the team bypassed the Recovery Room and took Issy straight to ICU. They had intubated her for the surgery and a ventilator was breathing for her, keeping her O2 sats at 98%. The decision was made to keep her on the ventilator overnight and try to wean her in the morning.

Chase, Taub and Lane each gave a concise report to House on their individual part of the surgery. After Lane gave his report, he reached into his pocket, pulled something out and handed it to House.

"I'm not sure if it can be repaired, but I thought Issy may want it back anyway."

House stared down at the item in his hand. It was Issy's watch, the one that he had given her for Valentine's Day. She wore it on her left arm and the watch face had been smashed along with the bones in her arm. He felt a pang in his heart, remembering her delight at receiving the gift, and quickly stuffed the watch into his pocket, nodding his thanks to Lane.

One by one, the other doctors drifted away, promising to check back in the morning. Wilson made a futile attempt to get House to go home, but the older man simply shook his head.

"I'm not leaving her. You, on the other hand, can go to our apartment and grab a few things."

House quickly rattled off a list and Wilson jotted down the items, wondering at a few of them, but knowing better than to question House about them, especially with the state of mind he was in. Better to just bring him what he wanted and keep his questions to himself.

After shooing Wilson out of the room, House picked up his cell and called his favorite poker-playing janitor. "Lou? House here. I need you to go to the OB doctors lounge and transport one of the recliners to ICU room seven."

Like everyone else in the hospital, Lou knew what had happened to Issy and wanted to help in any way that he could. "Gimme ten minutes Doc and I'll be there."

House closed the phone. His arms itched to hold her, but he barely knew where to touch her. Her left arm was in a splint, she had stitches across her chest and from pubis to belly button. An IV was in her right arm and the lower half of her face was covered with the intubation mask. Finally he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. His emotions almost overwhelmed him at that point, and he probably would have given into them except for the knowledge that Lou would be arriving any minute. He still had to squeeze his eyes tightly shut to prevent the tears from forming. He quickly kissed her again, and even though he knew that she couldn't hear him, whispered in her ear: "I love you, Issy-belle."

He collapsed back into the straight-back chair, his left hand claiming her right. His other hand moved to rest lightly upon her thigh. His eyes glanced back and forth between her face and the monitors while he waited for Lou and Wilson to arrive with the items he needed to make it through the night.

++++++++++ HOUSE MD +++++++

Lou arranged the chair close enough to the bed so that House would be able to reach out and hold Issy's hand. After the janitor left, House sank into the chair with a groan. His leg ached from the stress of the day and he dry-swallowed two Vicodins before gently picking up Issy's hand and holding it in his own.

Wilson returned about 45 minutes later. In addition to the requested items, he had also stopped by the deli and picked up a dry Reuben for House. Two beers were also hidden in the bag and House gratefully popped one open. He wasn't really hungry, but knew that he needed to eat. He managed to swallow about half of the sandwich before giving up. There was no problem with downing both beers.

After ascertaining that House was OK for the night and promising to return in the morning with bagels and coffee, Wilson went home to catch a few hours of sleep.

House set up Issy's I-Pod with the speakers and set it to 'shuffle'. He wasn't sure how much sound would penetrate her sedated mind, but he preferred that it should be music as opposed to the constant beeping of the monitors. Once the machine was set up, he stretched out in the recliner and managed to doze off to Lucinda Williams asking _'Are you Alright?'_ The irony was not lost on him, but he was too tired to think about it.

**_Friday May 30th, 2008_**

When he woke in the morning, he noticed that someone had kindly thrown a blanket on top of him. He rubbed his face for a moment and then realized that he was not the only one awake. One of the nurses was there, checking Issy's vitals.

His sleep-filled voice sounded grumpier than usual: "How is she?"

The stocky nurse with close-cropped brown hair actually smiled at him before replying. "She's been stable all night. O2 sats are 98%, BP is 110/75, pulse 78, urine output around 300 ml. Good color, no visible signs of blood."

He grunted his thanks and after flashing him another smile, she left the room. House struggled to his feet, his leg hurting more than usual after the night spent in the recliner, and limped to the head of the bed. He gently stroked her hair for a moment and then kissed her forehead. "Good morning, baby. After Wilson get here with my coffee, we'll see if you're stable enough to wean off the sedation. I want you to wake up. I need to see your eyes. I need to hear your voice."

After planting another quick kiss on her forehead, House limped into the bathroom to take care of business. A glance in the mirror told him that he looked like shit, but he cared less than usual about his appearance. Issy's condition was the only thing that concerned him at the moment, that and getting a cup of coffee.

As luck would have it, when House stepped out of the bathroom, Wilson had appeared. Naturally he was pressed and combed and didn't look like he had slept in a chair all night. On a normal day, House might have teased him about his nattiness, but today was not a normal day. The only thing House cared about was the large latte that Wilson was handing to him.

He took a big swallow and sighed: "Nectar of the gods."

Wilson gave a half-hearted chuckle: "Thought you could use the _grande_ size today. How did the night go?"

House took another sip of coffee before answering. "Issy slept like a log. Vitals were stable all night. Once the team gets here, I want to try to wean her off the propofol. Once she's alert, Foreman can give her a thorough neuro exam. With any luck, we can get her off the ventilator today."

"Can't wait to hear her voice again?"

Wilson knew him too damn well. House huffed: "You know as well as I do that patients on vents for more than 24 hours are at increased risk for VAP."

Ventilator-associated pneumonia was a serious concern, but not the primary reason that House wanted her weaned off. Wilson was right, but House would never admit that to him.

His friend opened his mouth to respond, but before he could get a word out, there was a knock on the glass sliding door. Without waiting for a response, the detective walked into the room.

House narrowed his eyes at him. "How the hell did you get in here?"

The detective shrugged: "I'm a cop. Flash the badge and you can get into just about anywhere. How is she doing?"

"She'd be doing a lot better if your people had found her faster."

Surprisingly the cop agreed with him. "You're right. If we hadn't lost them in the industrial section, we might have prevented this. And if she hadn't been so smart with her cell phone, we wouldn't have found her until it was too late."

Suddenly the coffee was burning a hole in his gut. House didn't want to think about what might have happened if Issy hadn't thought of a way to tip them off with her location.

"Thought she might want this back."

House looked up to see that the detective was offering Issy's cell phone to him. Nodding his thanks, House took it and set it on the bedside table.

"When do you think she'll be able to answer some questions?"

House frowned: "What kind of questions?"

"We need a statement from her, detailing what happened from the time he put the knife to her throat until."

The detective let that sentence fade away, but House wasn't about to. He spat out: "Until _what?_ You need to know how much of the _torture_ that she can remember? The bastard is _dead_. Why the hell does Issy need to relive that experience? Is it just so you can close out your paperwork? You _know_ what happened here at the hospital. You _heard_ quite a bit of what happened in the car and you can _see_ the damage he inflicted on her in that damn motel room. There's nothing she _needs_ to tell you. So get the hell outta here."

The detective glanced at Wilson, perhaps hoping that the other doctor would be more reasonable, but Wilson merely walked to the sliding glass door and pulled it open, his message clear.

Pulling a card out of his pocket, the detective laid it on the table. "I need her statement. Call me when she is able to answer questions."

House snarled at his retreating back. "When hell freezes over."


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53 **

After putting in a page to the team, House fished an 'everything' bagel out of the bag and started smearing cream cheese on it. Wilson had even brought lox, which immediately made House suspicious since Wilson didn't usually splurge on the smoked fish. House went on preparing his breakfast; when he finished, he sat back in the recliner to eat and wait for Wilson to drop the expected bombshell.

He knew his friend so well. After a little hemming, hawing and neck rubbing, Wilson blurted out: "It's all over the news."

With a mouth full of breakfast, House mumbled: "What?"

"The rescue. I caught in on the local news this morning and it's front page on all the papers."

Reaching into another bag, Wilson pulled out two newspapers and handed them to House. The Princeton Herald's headline was more reticent, simply stating that two kidnapped girls had been rescued but The Trenton Times' headline screamed: _"PPTH Nursing Student Saves 2 Girls from Pervert_ _Dad!"_ There was even a picture of Issy on the cover. House recognized it as the photo from her student ID.

House hissed: "Oh fuck."

Wilson gave a sympathetic nod. "It's all over the TV news too. I saw it on the local station and on CNN."

House quickly read both articles. The Princeton newspaper article mentioned Issy by name, but there was no photo. Her role in foiling the kidnapping was briefly discussed but the main focus of the article was the reunion of the children with their mother. The Times' article took a different approach to the story. That paper was much more tabloid-like and ran articles that leaned towards the more sensational side of journalism. House felt his blood pressure rise as he read. The article detailed how Isabelle Walker, a mere nursing student, had recognized signs of abuse in the girls and had taken them into the ER to be treated. She had been kidnapped and badly injured by the perpetrator until the police managed to rescue her. The article even revealed how Issy had used her cell phone to aid in her own recovery.

"Fuck. How did they get all this info? Did you talk to anyone?"

Wilson held up both of his hands in innocent protest. "Not a word, but I'd say someone in this hospital blabbed."

"Damn, Issy's not going to like this."

"Well, I know she likes her privacy, but she's a hero now. She's entitled to her 15 minutes of fame. Don't you think she'd want it?"

House shook his head. "You know all the stuff I told you _in confidence_ yesterday? You think she'd want _that _to come out?"

Wilson nodded in understanding: "Good point."

House went on: "You can't say anything about her past. Not a fucking word to anyone, even Cuddy or my team. Don't tell anyone where she's from so that they can't go back there and dig up dirt. I only told you all that because I thought that she was going to die. Christ, I betrayed her confidence and I gave the consent to mutilate her. Fucking great boyfriend I am."

"You had no choice. You did that to save her life."

"Yeah, that's what Stacy thought too."

Wilson argued: "This was completely different. There were options in your case, but, with Issy, you had no choice. Issy was bleeding out. She had already arrested once. There was no point in attempting to save an organ that was beyond repair. Medically, you made the right call."

House hoped that Issy would see it that way, but he wasn't about to voice those concerns to Wilson. He slapped the papers onto the bedside table: "We gotta get Cuddy to try to find the leak. I can't have people coming in here and snapping cell phone pictures of Issy to sell to the press."

"Good point. Right now, we should only allow your team and handpicked nurses in the room. I'll call Cuddy and explain the situation."

"Just say we need to protect Issy's privacy. Don't give her any details."

"Don't worry, House. Believe it or not, I _can_ keep a secret."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The team arrived not long after House finished eating his bagel. Issy had been completely sedated since the surgery, but now Chase started slowly weaning the propofol so that she would wake up enough to respond to stimuli. Initially it went well. A pinch of her ear lobe produced a wince of pain. A request to wiggle her toes produced slight movement under the blanket. But the next down turn of the propofol dose resulted in an agitated response when Chase asked Issy to open her eyes. She struggled and grabbed for the mouthpiece. When House grabbed her hand, she struggled harder.

House tried to verbally calm her: "Issy, it's Greg. You're safe now. You're at PPTH. I'm here with you. You're intubated; that's what's in your mouth. We can't take it out just yet, so just relax and let the machine breathe for you. Open your eyes for me, Issy. You're safe now. It's safe to open your eyes."

Issy continued to struggle, so Chase had no choice but to turn up the propofol dose again until Issy calmed down.

"We'll try again later, House. She's too agitated at the moment."

House nodded, hiding his disappointment. It was Issy's birthday and he really wanted her to wake up _today_. At least her neurological responses had been appropriate, lessening the possibility that there had been brain damage from the beating. Foreman wouldn't be able to do a full neuro exam until she woke up, but so far that part of her recovery was looking positive.

Promising to check back later, the other doctors headed off to their duties, leaving House alone with Issy. Once he was safe from prying eyes, he bent over and kissed Issy's forehead again. "Next time, we try this, I want you to open your eyes for me. I wanna see those big baby blues of yours. Today's your birthday and I got you a little present. Be nice to get it today, right on your birthday, wouldn't it? I can make Chase sing 'Happy Birthday' to you if you want."

He kissed her forehead again, sighed and touched his forehead to hers. "Just wake up for me, baby. I miss you."

One more kiss and House plopped back into the recliner. Reaching through the bedrails, he grabbed her right hand and then fell into a light doze.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Wilson came back at lunchtime with an offering of a dry Reuben, fries and a Coke. Surprisingly for House, he found his appetite had returned and he scarfed the food down. Wilson munched his tuna fish sandwich and made some small talk about his patients, knowing House wasn't really interested, but doing it just to have some conversation in the quiet room.

After they had finished eating, Wilson said: "I spoke to Cuddy. The nurses have been instructed about the need for privacy. Issy has a strict confidentiality note on her file now. Anyone accessing her medical records without due cause can be subject to termination. No visitors are allowed without express permission and only you or Chase can give that."

"Yeah, but what's to stop a nurse or lab tech from walking in here and snapping a photo of her to sell to the highest bidder?"

"Your ongoing presence in her room, I suppose. Are you ever going to go home and perhaps _shower_? You've been in those same clothes for more than 24 hours now."

House huffed: "That's not even close to my record."

Then he sighed: "I don't want to leave her. I don't want someone coming in here while I'm gone."

Wilson glanced at his watch: "I don't have another patient until 2:00. Why don't I stay here with her while you hit the showers in the locker room?"

House thought for a minute and then nodded. A hot shower would feel good on his aching leg and he knew Wilson would watch over her. House grabbed his bag and started for the door. "Don't let anyone in. No reporters and no cops. If you get paged and have to go, don't leave her until I get back, or get Chase or Taub up here."

Wilson picked up the remote and aimed it at the TV. "I'm not going anywhere, House. I'll be right here with Issy when you get back."

Satisfied with his answer, House gave him a nod and headed off to the locker room.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The hot water felt wonderful. He could have spent an hour under the spray, but he didn't want to leave Issy for too long. He washed his body, shampooed his hair and spent an extra five minutes just enjoying the hot water before reluctantly turning it off. Between the hot shower and the clean clothes, he felt somewhat revived as he headed back upstairs.

As House approached the ICU nursing station on the way back from the locker room, he heard the unit clerk say: "I'm sorry, ma'am. We have strict orders to not allow any visitors without permission from her doctors."

"Well, let me talk to one of her doctors. She saved my daughters' lives and I really want to thank her."

That got House's attention. He turned to see who the voice belonged to and saw a tall woman dressed in a gray suit jacket and skirt. Two young girls flanked the woman, each one gripping a hand. The younger child was also clutching a teddy bear and had her face pressed into the woman's jacket.

_Shit!_

House realized with a start just who they were. These were the girls that Issy had risked her life to save. They were so young; the little one so tiny, it made him physically sick to think of anyone doing _that_ to such a small child.

The woman continued arguing with the unit clerk and House felt it was time to step in. While he could understand the woman's need to speak to Issy, his girlfriend was in no shape to receive visitors at the moment.

As he approached the desk, the unit clerk's eyes widened with fear and she took an involuntary step backwards. Normally, House would have been amused by such a reaction, but not today.

"I'm Dr. House."

The trio wheeled around and looked at him. The younger girl let out a squeak and then buried her face back into her mother's jacket. The older one was bolder. After giving House a close scrutiny, she pointed her finger at him and said: "I saw you. You were in the ER yelling at Dr. Cuddy after he took her. You said that Issy's your girlfriend."

House responded in a gentle tone: "Yes, that's right. Issy's my girlfriend."

The child asked eagerly: "Is she OK? Can we see her?"

Trying to find a balance between the truth and dumping too much information on a young child, House said in a hesitant tone: "You can't see her just yet. She's been hurt and she needs some time to get better before people visit."

Her lip trembled: "Dad hurt her, didn't he? Is she hurt bad?"

House nodded: "Pretty bad."

"Is she going to get better?"

"She will but it will take some time."

The lip trembling worsened. "If I hadn't brought Maddie to the hospital, Issy wouldn't have gotten hurt. This is all my fault."

The word exploded from House's mouth before he could stop it. "No!"

It seemed as if the entire nursing unit froze at House's outburst. The mother's eyes widened and she put a protective arm around her older daughter.

Inwardly cursing himself for his overreaction, House beckoned them over to a waiting area, a short distance away from eavesdropping employees. He waited until they all had taken a seat, the younger girl sitting on her mother's lap.

Looking at the older child, he could picture Issy at that age, thrust into the adult world long before she was ready for it. She squirmed on the seat next to her mother, trying hard to be brave and grown-up, but the reality was that she was still just a child. He racked his brain for a memory and it came to him. Cuddy had told him that the older girl was not quite 12 and that her name was Abby. She was the same age that Issy had been when her stepfather started raping her. Although a part of him was glad that Abby's dad was dead and couldn't hurt anyone anymore, another part of him regretted the fact that the man would not get the punishment that he deserved, a long jail sentence and the abuse that most pedophiles received from their fellow prisoners. If anyone deserved that retribution, this bastard certainly did.

In a gentle tone, House said: "Abby, this is not your fault. You are not responsible for what happened."

The child sniffed: "But if I hadn't left Subway and brought Maddie here, Issy wouldn't have gotten hurt."

He wanted her to really understand why it wasn't her fault so he decided to take her through it step by step. "What made you decide to bring Maddie to the ER?"

"She was bleeding and it wouldn't stop."

"Did you tell your dad about it?"

She nodded. "He said it was normal, a sign of becoming a woman. But I didn't bleed that much when it happened to me. And it hurt when Maddie peed and that didn't happen to me either."

The mother made a strangled noise in her throat and then buried her face in her younger daughter's hair.

Although aware of the woman's pain, House continued on: "Your sister was hurt and bleeding. You thought she needed a doctor and you thought your dad wouldn't take her so _you_ brought her to a hospital. That was very smart of you. If you hadn't brought your sister here, who knows what might have happened to her. She could have gotten worse without medical care. You did _the right thing_."

Tears pooled in Abby's eyes and her lower lip trembled. Desperate to prevent a real crying jag, House quickly said: "Issy, it's not your fault. You are not responsible for what happened. You're just a child and he was the adult. He's the one responsible."

Belatedly he realized that he had called the child by the wrong name. "Abby, I meant to say Abby. It's not your fault, Abby."

The child leaned against her mother. They sat in silence for a few minutes. House tried to be patient, knowing that Abby needed some time to process everything that he had said.

Finally Abby asked: "Is Issy mad at me?"

House's jaw dropped slightly at her words, but he quickly recovered. "No, definitely not. Issy is _not_ mad at you. She is very happy that you are back with your mom again."

"Even though she got hurt?"

House nodded: "Even though she got hurt."

"Can I see her, please?"

The child's tone was desperate and House thought he understood her need. Abby desired an absolution that only Issy could give. He was going to have to let them see her, but it wasn't going to happen today.

"She's sleeping right now. When are you going back to St. Louis?"

The mom answered. "We'll stay as long as necessary. My girls really need to see her and I need to thank her."

House nodded: "Call the nursing station tomorrow afternoon. They'll find me and I'll see if she's up for a visit."

"Thank you Dr. House. You have no idea what this means to us."

_I think I have a pretty good idea._

Everyone stood up. House nodded a 'good-bye' and turned towards Issy's room. After two steps, he turned back and addressed the girls' mother: "By the way, did you speak to Dr. Stone?"

She nodded: "Yes, we all did."

House locked eyes with her and said: "Good. You should find another Dr. Stone when you get back to St. Louis."

Her smile showed that she appreciated his concern: "We will, Dr. House. We definitely will."


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter 54 **

Later that evening, the team tried to wean down the propofol, but once again Issy became agitated when asked to open her eyes. Chase left her at Ramsay sedation level four and told House that they would try again tomorrow. She had been at level five after surgery, so it was an improvement, but not enough of one for House's liking.

Wilson took dinner matters into his own hands again, ordering Chinese food delivery. Sizzling shrimp, Hunan beef and pork lo mein were on the menu tonight. Issy's I-pod was on an Eric Clapton shuffle and House occasionally waved an aromatic piece of food under Issy's nose.

"She's at a lower level of sedation tonight. Sounds and smells will get through better and I want her brain stimulated."

Wilson nodded, although privately disagreeing with House on this matter. Ramsay level four was still fairly high and exactly how much stimuli was getting through to Issy's sedated brain was up for question. However, it wasn't worth an argument with House, so Wilson kept his opinions to himself.

He left around nine, promising to return with breakfast again tomorrow. House flipped around the channels for a while, finally turning the TV off. He stared at Issy for a few minutes as if he could will her to wake up. An idea came to him and he limped over to her IV. He made a slight downward adjustment to the propofol and watched the monitors. After five minutes, there was no change. He lowered it again and waited. This time she was at the same dose that she had been at earlier when she had gotten agitated. He didn't request anything from her, just watched the monitors. Sure enough, after a few minutes at this dosage, her heart rate started increasing. It was not enough of an increase to set off the alarms, but it was significant in House's eyes. He had a theory.

Ringing the nurse and requesting some morphine, he waited until she had brought the syringe and left the room again before testing out his theory. He gave Issy the shot of morphine and then watched the monitors. After five minutes, her heart rate was back to normal. House grinned; his theory was correct. Issy was agitated because she was in pain. Now that the morphine had soothed her pain, he quietly requested for her to open her eyes.

"It's Greg, Issy. You're safe now. Open your eyes for me, baby. Open your eyes for Greg."

He felt such a thrill as her eyelids fluttered. Finally she managed to open her eyes, but her gaze was unfocused.

"Can you see me, baby? It's Greg. I'm right here with you. You're safe now."

It seemed like her eyes were trying to track to the sound of his voice, but then her eyelids fluttered close again.

"Good job, Issy. Can you wiggle your toes for me?"

He glanced down at her feet and saw the movement under the blanket. Smiling, he took her hand and asked her to squeeze it. The resulting grip was very weak, but she had responded to his command.

"Once more, Issy. Open your eyes for me. Open your eyes for Greg."

Her eyelids fluttered and then finally opened.

"That's my girl. Can you see me? Can you see my face? Blink your eyes if you can see me."

Issy's eyes simply closed again, but House wasn't disappointed. With the help of some morphine, he had weaned her down to Ramsay level three tonight. Tomorrow, he felt certain that he could get her off the propofol. She just needed some morphine for the pain and perhaps some Ativan for the agitation. It wasn't easy waking up again after being in a drug-induced coma for a while, something that he knew from first-hand experience.

House made an adjustment to the monitor so if her heart rate went up during the night due to pain, the alarm would sound and wake him up. He put the I-Pod on a nice relaxing shuffle and climbed into the recliner. Grasping her hand through the bedrails, he muttered: "Tomorrow, baby. You'll wake up tomorrow."

With that thought in his mind, and Jackson Browne singing softly on the I-Pod, House fell into a deep sleep.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

The monitor had awakened House only once during the night, but another shot of morphine had settled Issy down again. Considering her extensive injuries, it was not surprising that she was in a great deal of pain. The heavy sedation had kept the pain at bay, but once they had started weaning the propofol, her body began reacting to the pain.

When the team arrived on Saturday morning, House explained what he had done. They were surprised at Issy's response, but armed with the new knowledge they prepared to start the weaning process again. This time House gave Issy 2 mg of morphine to take the edge off of her pain first and then they started the taper. By the time the drip rate had been cut in half, Issy was staring to blink and fidget.

Foreman said: "I think she is coming around."

House gripped her small hand in his, his thumb gently stroking the back of her hand. For once, not caring what Wilson or the ducklings heard, House said: "Issy, wake up. It's Greg. You're safe now. You're at PPTH. Open your eyes for me, Issy."

It sounded like Greg's voice, but it couldn't be. He couldn't be here. She was at that abandoned motel with that evil man. The memory of his rage washed over her like a tidal wave. He had ripped her clothes off with that big knife and tried to rape her. When his erection failed, his anger hit epic proportions and he started beating her with a broomstick. She curled up into a little ball, trying to protect her head from his blows. Then he had forced her legs apart, the pain exploded deep in her belly and she mercifully remembered no more.

Then she was back in Akron on the street where she had grown up. Her Daddy had been there and she had wanted to go with him, but he wouldn't let her. He told her to go back, but what was there to go back to? Then Issy heard voices calling her name. One voice sounded like Greg's but that couldn't be. Greg had not been in that awful motel room and he certainly hadn't been in Akron.

The pain was back. It crashed over her like a wave. She tried to moan, but suddenly she realized that there was something over her mouth and in her throat. She tried to take a breath, but couldn't do so. Panic swept through her body and she struggled to free her arms to rid herself of the thing that was in her throat. But her left arm was weighed down with a heaviness that she couldn't fight and someone was holding her right hand in a firm grip. _She was trapped! She was going to suffocate! He was going to kill her!_

"Issy, it's Greg. Open your eyes, Issy. You're safe now. You're at PPTH. Don't struggle; you're intubated and the machine is breathing for you. Open your eyes and you'll see where you are. You're in the hospital. You're safe now. Open your eyes, baby, please."

That last _'please'_ was said on such a desperate note. Issy had never heard such a tone come out of Greg's mouth before. It sounded like his voice, but it couldn't be him. _Could it?_ Hoping against hope that he really was there, she slowly opened her eyes.

Her blue irises were the most beautiful sight that he had ever seen. Despite the presence of the other doctors, House smiled at her. "Hey, welcome back."

She stared at him as if he were an aberration. If he were really here, why was there something in her throat, suffocating her? Surely if Greg were here, he would pull it out so that she could breathe. She must be dreaming his presence the same way that she had dreamed about her Daddy.

Issy wrenched her hand out of his grasp and brought it to her mouth. A hard plastic covering was there, but before she could pull it out, her hand was grabbed again.

"Easy, baby. You're intubated. It won't feel very good if you pull that tube out yourself. And you really won't like it if we have to put it back in. Just relax and let the machine breathe for you."

Another voice piped in: "House, she's agitated. We need to sedate her again before she does herself an injury."

That voice. She knew that voice. That was Foreman, the fellow that Greg had been forced to rehire. Her eyes followed the sound of the voice and sure enough, there he was. Next to him was Dr. Taub the one who had stitched her up when Mancini had hurt her. He gave her a weak smile and a wave.

A voice with an Aussie accent spoke up: "Remember me?"

Issy's eyes tracked to the sound, but she knew immediately whom that voice belonged to. It was Dr. Chase, the surgeon with the lovely hair and sexy accent. She looked into his face and he smiled, making him look even more handsome than he usually did. There was something about him that made her want to smile back, but she couldn't with that plastic thing in her mouth.

A gentle voice said: "I'm here too."

Issy looked into the soft brown eyes that belong to Greg's best friend. He seemed genuinely happy to see her. If Wilson were here, perhaps that man really was Greg.

She turned her head to look at him. It was the same intense blue eyes that she had been staring into for months. She could see the little scar on his nose. He had told her how he got it, but at the moment she couldn't remember the story. His scruff was a little longer than usual, but it did really look like him. She pulled her hand free once again and touched his cheek. He covered her hand with his own and pressed her palm to his lips.

His words came out as a whisper: "Mon trésor."

Issy's eyes widened: she remembered those words. She had called him that back in New York. It really was Greg!

Tears pooled in her eyes and leaked out, running down the sides of her face. After a gentle caress of his cheek, she lowered her hand and fisted the front of his shirt.

"Ow, ow, hey, you got some chest hairs there. Can you ease up a bit?"

Issy fisted his shirt even tighter than before. This time, House laughed and leaned closer to her. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise. Wilson will have to bring me a urinal when it's time to tinkle."

He planted a kiss on her forehead and Issy managed to get a whiff of his manly scent. Since he hadn't had a chance to shower yet, his body odor was stronger than usual, but Issy didn't care. The scent told her that this was not a dream. Greg was really here with her. She was safe again. Exhausted, she closed her eyes and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy was confused when she first woke up. It took her a moment to remember where she was and why there was a tube down her throat. Then it came to her. She had been kidnapped and injured by the girls' father. Now she was back at PPTH, intubated and being monitored in ICU. What kind of injuries had she sustained that necessitated this type of medical intervention?

She glanced around the room; all the other doctors had left. Only Greg remained and he was lying on his left side in a nearby recliner, his hand reaching through the bedrails to hold onto hers. He let out a soft snore; the sound was comforting and she wanted to smile, but the mouthpiece prevented it.

"_I'm not going anywhere. I promise. Wilson will have to bring me a urinal when it's time to tinkle."_

The urinal might not be necessary, but he was true to his word. He had not left her alone and for that she was profoundly grateful.

The throbbing pain that she remembered from earlier today was still there. She remembered getting hit with the broomstick so the pain in her arm and side was understandable, but why did she have such an ache in her belly and why did the skin on her chest feel so uncomfortably tight?

Issy became aware of music playing and she glanced around for the source, smiling inwardly when she saw her I-Pod set up on the bedside table. Josh Ritter was singing _'Good Man'_ and Issy wanted to chuckle at the irony of it. Most people thought of Dr. Gregory House as an uncaring misanthrope, but Issy knew that the sleeping man holding her hand had another side, a side that he rarely let people see. She had been lucky enough to be privy to that part of his personality. He had been good to her, so good that she didn't want things to end between them.

She gently stroked the back of his hand with her thumb. That slight movement caused him to wake with a start. He glanced around bleary-eyed for a moment, until his eyes found hers. His smile was wide and genuine and Issy would have given anything to be able to smile back.

His eyes shone as he whispered: "There's my girl."

House eased himself first to a seated position, and then he struggled to his feet. Limping the few steps to the head of the bed, he cupped her face between his big hands and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Don't ever get kidnapped again. I don't think my old heart could take it."

Tears formed in Issy's eyes and leaked out, running down the side of her face. She could hear the worry behind his gruff tone and was touched by his concern. It just made her love him even more.

He planted another lingering kiss on her forehead and wiped away her tears with his thumbs. "It's nice to see your blue eyes again. I'm trying to behave and let Chase play attending physician, but I'd like to get you off the vent as soon as possible. Believe it or not, I can't wait to hear your voice again."

Issy tapped the mouthpiece and mimicking pulling the tube out.

"You want the tube out too, huh?"

Issy nodded.

With a smirk, he said: "Let me page your _attending_ and see what we can do."

House paged both Chase and Wilson. Even though it was Saturday, and Chase was technically off duty, he was fully expecting the call from House and arrived in ICU in a short period of time.

He greeted Issy with a big grin. "Hey, Issy. Looking good. You seem much more awake and alert this time. What's going on?"

Issy tapped the mouthpiece.

Chase nodded in understanding. "You want the tube out?"

A nod was Issy's answer.

"Let's check you out first and see how you're doing."

Wilson arrived just as Chase was getting started. The two older doctors watched carefully while Chase examined Issy.

When he was finished, Chase expressed his belief that Issy seemed well enough to try to wean off the vent. It was decided that they would stop the machine and let her breathe on her own through the tube for an hour. If she handled that well, they would pull the tube and put her on oxygen via nasal cannula.

Chase explained: "You still won't be able to talk with the tube in your throat, but hopefully after an hour, we'll be able to pull that too."

He turned the vent off and they watched as she started breathing on her own.

Chase held the stethoscope to her chest. "Try to take a few deep breaths for me."

Issy tried, but the pain in her side increased when she tried to take a deep inhalation. She pointed to that area and looked at Chase.

"Yes, it's going to hurt for a while, but you'll need to take deep inhalations every hour to help prevent pneumonia from setting in. If you hold a pillow against the broken ribs, that will help to stabilize them when you take deep breaths."

_Broken ribs? What the hell?_ She gave Chase a questioning look.

Chase frowned: "You do know that you have three broken ribs, right?"

Issy slowly shook her head and shot House a questioning look. He gripped her right hand and said softly: "You haven't been awake very long. Haven't had time to tell you everything yet. Let's take it slow, alright?"

House shot a meaningful glance at Chase as he spoke the last sentence.

Chase picked up on House's message and started off gently: "You have three broken ribs. They will heal on their own, but they'll be sore for a while. It will hurt when you take deep inhalations, but you need to do it to prevent pneumonia from setting in. Both of the bones in your forearm are broken. Dr. Lane reduced them and he put on a splint because you had a lot of swelling. In a couple of days when the swelling goes down, he'll cast it."

Issy nodded.

_OK. So she had a broken arm and ribs. That was not unexpected considering that the bastard had beaten her with a broomstick. But what about her belly and why did her skin feel so tight on her chest? What else had happened to her? _

Issy pointed to her belly and for a split second, she thought she saw a flash of pain in House's eyes. The look disappeared quickly and House grabbed her hand.

"Hey, I didn't tell you about the girls."

Issy's eyes widened and she shook her head, trying to silently encourage him to go on.

House had hoped that this news would be a good distraction from telling her about the rest of her injuries. He really wanted her to absorb only a little bit at a time.

"I met them, the girls and their mother. They were here yesterday and they want to see you."

Issy had so many questions and was completely frustrated by her inability to talk. She pulled her hand out of House's grip and signed the letters 'OK'.

Wilson was the one to recognize what she was doing. "Hey, are you signing? Do you know how to sign?"

Issy responded by signing 'A, B, C'.

Wilson got the message: "A, B, C? You know the alphabet?"

Issy made a fist and bobbed it up and down.

"So you signed 'OK'. You want to know if the girls are OK?"

Issy's fist nodded yes again.

Chase picked up the recitation. "Maddie had a urethral tear. That was the cause of the bleeding and the painful urination. I repaired it and she's going to be just fine."

House went on: "Their mother is here with them and they all want to see you. Abby is afraid that you are mad at her."

Issy's eyes widened as she signed: "WHY."

Wilson translated her question. House shrugged: "She seems to think that this is all her fault. If she hadn't brought her sister to the ER, her dad would not have kidnapped you and you wouldn't have gotten injured."

Tears leaked out of Issy's eyes as she shook her head back and forth. Her fingers signed: "NO, NO."

House went on: "I told her that it wasn't her fault, that she is only a child and she can't shoulder the responsibility that belongs to the adult, but I think she needs to hear it from you."

A panicked look crossed Issy's face and she frantically signed to Wilson. "DAD."

Wilson answered: "Their dad is dead. The police shot him when they rescued you. Do you remember any of that?"

Issy shook her head, her mind reeling with everything that she had been told. Her arm and ribs were broken, but she had other injuries that they had not told her about yet. Why hadn't they told her everything? The evil man was dead and the girls were safe. That was good news, but why didn't she remember what had happened? Time seemed to have stopped at a certain point of the attack. He pushed her legs apart and then there was horrible pain. What had he done to her? On top of all of that, Abby thought everything that had happened was her fault. Issy needed to see her ASAP and tell her the truth. It had never been her fault; it had always been her dad's.

Issy signed: "NEED TO SEE ABBY."

House stroked her hair away from her face. "I know you do. Her mom is supposed to call me later so that I can tell her if you are up for a visit. You'll want to be extubated so that you can talk to her. Let's see how your O2 sats do so that we'll know if we can extubate you today or not."

Issy sank back into the pillow, tears leaking from her eyes once more.

House asked: "Issy, are you in pain?"

She nodded.

"Let me get you some morphine. Pain causes you to take shallow breaths and that will lower your O2 sats. It's already fallen to 95. Let's get your pain under control so we can get you extubated."

Wilson rushed out to get a syringe of morphine. When he returned, House promptly shot 2 mg into her IV line. "This should help. Just relax. We'll be right here."

Issy tried to fight the effects of the morphine, but in the end, her eyes closed as she dozed off from the medication.

The three doctors watched the monitor. The relaxing effect of the morphine allowed Issy to take deeper breaths and her O2 sats slowly crept back up to 97.

Chase said: "We'll see how she is when she wakes up, but if she stays here, I think we can extubate her. When are you going to tell her about the rest of her injuries?"

House shrugged and glanced away: "You're her attending; shouldn't you be the one to make that decision?"


	55. Chapter 55

**Chapter 55 **

Issy's O2 sats remained stable during her hour-long nap. When she woke up, she immediately tapped the mouthpiece, indicating her desire to have the tube pulled.

Chase cranked the bed up to a 45-degree angle and readied the nasal cannula that Issy would use for supplemental oxygen.

House grabbed the tube and asked: "Are you ready?"

Issy nodded.

"Blow out hard as I pull the tube."

House pulled the tube out in one fluid motion. The procedure sent Issy into a short coughing fit. House quickly held a pillow to her injured ribs while Chase attached the nasal cannula.

Once she had stopped coughing, House asked: "OK, now?"

Issy nodded.

"You can talk now. Say something."

Issy croaked out: "Water, please."

House chuckled: "Profound first words. Let's start you with some ice chips and see how that goes."

Wilson left the room and quickly returned with a cup of ice chips and a spoon. He handed the cup to House, who immediately spooned up a chip and placed it on Issy's tongue. It was so cool and refreshing that Issy moaned.

"Been there, know that gross dry feeling. If you can keep down a few of these, I'll see that you get some Jello for dinner tonight."

Issy managed another word: "Orange?"

House made a face: "If you insist. I'll take cherry for me."

Issy gave him a weak smile and opened her mouth again, a silent plea for more of the ice. House fed her five or six more chips before she dozed off again.

Chase said: "She'll probably sleep a lot today. I'll write an order so that she can have morphine every four hours for the pain."

House said: "Make it every three hours, just in case. I want her to be comfortable."

Chase nodded in agreement: "She seems rather stable at the moment. Do you want me to stick around?"

"No, you can go, but keep your beeper and cell phone handy, just in case."

"Of course. Page me if you need anything. When do you want to tell her about the other injuries?"

House let out a small sigh. "No sooner than I have to."

++++ HOUSE MD +++++

After Chase left, House sent a text to Foreman and Taub updating them on her condition. Foreman replied, stating that he'd be there in a little while to perform a neuro exam and Taub merely asked if he was needed. House told Taub that he wasn't needed, but to check in tomorrow.

Foreman arrived in the late afternoon. He performed as much of the neuro exam as he could considering that Issy could not get out of bed yet and her left arm was immobilized in a splint. Her pupils were normal and reactive to light. Her smile was equal on both sides and she could raise both eyebrows to the same height. Foreman handed her a card to read and each eye performed the task equally well. Wilson held up an eye chart on the far wall and again Issy's vision was the same in both eyes.

He checked her hearing and her reflexes. Everything was normal. Then he sat on the side of the bed and held up his finger.

"Touch my finger with yours."

Issy did as instructed.

"Now touch your nose."

Foreman had her repeat that several times with her eyes open and then with her eyes closed.

"You are doing great, Issy. There are a few other tests that I'd like to do, but they will have to wait until you can get out of bed. As of right now, my professional opinion is that you have not suffered any brain damage from the head trauma."

Issy asked: "Did I have a concussion?"

Foreman shook his head: "No, the CT scan was normal, but you were unconscious for a while, so we were concerned. We believe that your arm took the brunt of the beating."

"I remember trying to protect my head. I curled up in a ball and wrapped my arms around my head."

Foreman nodded: "You did the right thing. Your arm has a bad break, but it should heal without any complications. A broken arm is better than a head injury any day."

Wilson probed gently: "Issy, do you remember much about what happened?"

A look of pain crossed her face and House silently cursed Wilson for asking that question. "You don't have to talk about it now, Issy. Just get some rest. Do you need some more morphine?"

Her answer was a whisper: "Not right now. I'm just so tired."

House answered calmly: "That's OK. Just sleep."

Issy's eyes fluttered and then slowly closed.

House shot an angry look at Wilson and jerked his head towards the door. All three doctors headed out to the hallway. When the door was shut and House was certain that Issy couldn't over hear them, he lit into Wilson: "What the hell were you thinking? Asking her if she could remember anything?"

Wilson shrugged: "I thought if you knew how much she remembered, it might make it easier on you to figure out how to tell her about her injuries. I mean, if she remembers."

House held up his hand in a 'stop' gesture. He hissed, keeping his voice low so that people in the near vicinity could not overhear, but his anger came through loud and clear. "You think if she _remembers_ getting raped by a broomstick, it will be _easier_ for her to learn about her injuries? I hope she doesn't remember. I don't want her to have conscious memories of getting raped or slashed with the knife."

Foreman interjected: "You know, it is very possible that she didn't have a head injury at all. She could have passed out from the pain. And while that is disturbing, it's better than having a head injury."

House gave a quick nod. "Her body was on sensory overload so her brain shut down. And since she was found with her arms curled around her head, and there was a small head wound, naturally we suspected head trauma. Losing consciousness from the pain fits."

Foreman went on: "Neurologically, I think she's going to be just fine. She just needs some time to heal from her other injuries. Want me to check back tomorrow?"

House shook his head: "I'll page you if I need you. You can't do the rest of the neuro exam until she can get out of bed and I don't expect her to do that tomorrow, Monday at the earliest."

"Alright. I'll see you on Monday, if I don't hear from you tomorrow."

As Foreman walked away, Wilson let out a sigh. "Are we OK?"

House squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and then said: "Yeah, we're fine. Just don't do that again. Don't ask her anything. Let her bring it up on her own. I don't want to force the issue with her."

"How are you going to tell her about the other injuries?"

Before House could respond, one of the nurses waved to him. "Dr. House, you have a phone call."

He didn't really want to take the call, but he didn't want to dodge the girls' mother forever. Plus Issy really wanted to see Abby, so he limped to the desk and picked up the phone. Mrs. Cooper was very understanding about Issy's condition and yet anxious about her daughter's state of mind. House finally agreed for them to come by tomorrow afternoon. He figured that by then, Issy should be up for a short conversation.

House returned to Issy's bedside while Wilson went out to get dinner. This time Wilson brought deli sandwiches and potato salad for the two of them and a container of chicken broth for Issy. Ignoring his growling stomach, House slowly fed Issy until she managed to consume half of the container. Satisfied with her intake for now, he let her rest while he ate his Reuben and a small container of potato salad.

Before leaving for the night, Wilson scored a couple of containers of Jello, cherry for House and orange for Issy. As House fed her the contents, he teased her mightily about her choice of flavor.

"I don't know how you can eat this stuff. Orange is so lame. Cherry is _da bomb."_

Issy smiled; they had had this conversation about flavors many times before. Greg always preferred cherry or strawberry while Issy preferred the citrus flavors. "You have to admit that it works out better this way. We don't have to fight over the last cherry Popsicle in the box."

House conceded her point. "True, but I would be willing to share. With you."

"That's so sweet of you."

He grumbled as he ate his cherry Jello. "I'm not sweet."

"Yes, you are. You're feeding me and taking really good care of me."

"You gotta get your strength back. If I didn't feed you, you'd have to wait for one of the nurses to find the time to do it. I didn't want your soup to get cold waiting for one of them to show up."

"It's still sweet of you."

House grumbled under his breath that he was _not_ sweet, while Issy merely smiled at him. They had had this particular discussion numerous times before.

There was a lull in the conversation while House finished his Jello. When he tossed the container into the trash can and claimed his 'two points', Issy piped up.

"Greg, what else happened?"

His eyes shifted away from her. "What do you mean?"

"What aren't you telling me? My belly hurts."

He quickly interrupted her: "Maybe you ate that soup too fast. You want some morphine?"

"No, I don't want any drugs just yet. I want to know why my belly hurts and why the skin on my chest feels so tight. I have other injuries that you haven't told me about yet, right?"

He nodded, still not looking her in the eye.

"Please tell me."

"Issy, it's. They're."

He paused, unable to go on.

Issy said softly: "These injuries are really bad, aren't they? That's why you don't want to tell me."

He sighed: "Yes."

She reached for his hand and he clasped her small one between both of his. "I need to know. It's harder not knowing and imagining the worst. You are going to have to tell me sometime. Besides if you were the one injured, you'd be _demanding_ to know what had happened."

She was right. If the situation were reversed, he'd be making a big ruckus until he found how what had happened to him. All he needed to do was to open his mouth and explain to her the extent of her injuries, just as if she was any other patient. The only problem was that she wasn't any ol' patient; she was the woman he loved and he hated to be the bearer of this horrible news, especially since he had been the one to consent to the operation. He floundered for a while, wondering where to start and then considered that Wilson's idea might actually have merit.

"What do you remember?"

Issy grimaced: "He dragged me into one of the motel rooms. Then he used that knife to cut my clothes off. He tried to rape me but."

She held up her fist with her forefinger extended. After a minute, she let the extended finger droop down.

"Are you saying that he tried but couldn't get an erection?"

Issy nodded. "He got really angry after that. He found a broom and started beating me with it. I curled up into a ball and tried to protect my head. It hurt so badly. Then."

Her voice trailed off. After a few minutes, House gently prompted her: "Then?"

She shook her head. "I remember him pushing my legs apart and then there was this intense pain. I think it made me black out because I don't remember anything else."

Issy looked at him and said plaintively: "What did he do to me?"

House's voice was edged with pain as he explained: "He used the broomstick to do what he physically couldn't do. He raped you with it. It was still lodged inside of you when they brought you to the ER. The damage to your uterus was severe; you were bleeding out. There was no choice but to do an emergency hysterectomy. I'm so sorry."

Issy shook her head back and forth in disbelief. An emergency hysterectomy? Well, that explained the belly pain. She probably had a huge incision on her abdomen from the need to perform that procedure. She looked back at House and was surprised by the intense look of pain in his eyes. And he apologized? He never apologized. And why would he now, for something that wasn't his fault?

"Greg, it's not your fault. That bastard is the one who did it to me. There's no need for you to be sorry."

If anything, the pained look of House's face intensified. "I gave the consent."

"I don't understand."

"You were unable to give consent and as you have no emergency contacts, Cuddy asked me for it."

"She wanted _you_ to give consent cuz you're my boyfriend?"

"Yeah, I mean, it really doesn't have any legal standing, but she figured that I would know what you wanted done, so she asked me to give consent for the procedures."

She looked at him blankly, not really comprehending what he was trying to say. "OK."

House's face screwed up in pain, remembering the observation room and Chase's words. "Issy, I had to be the one to tell Chase to remove your uterus. I gave consent for your hysterectomy."

"But you said, it couldn't be repaired, right? That I was bleeding profusely?"

"That's right. You were on your fourth unit of blood. The team was having trouble keeping your blood pressure up. You coded on the table. There were the other injuries to be dealt with and Chase thought that if he took the time to try to repair your uterus, that you might not make it through the surgery. The other problem was that your cervix was beyond repair and even with an intact uterus; you'd never be able to sustain a pregnancy to term. So I told him to yank your uterus and save your life."

He pressed his lips together and waited. Issy merely stared at him with questioning eyes and then finally asked: "OK."

"OK? I made a life-alternating decision about your body without your permission and that's all you say?"

"Greg, you just said I probably would have died without the surgery. What other choice did you have? Besides, I told you a long time ago that I never planned on having kids anyway."

"I know, but you're young. You still had time to change your mind. So I didn't really want to make that decision for you."

"I understand that, but you really had no choice. You did the right thing."

Tears came unbidden to House's eyes. In a choked voice, he said: "I thought I had lost you, then you came back. I couldn't lose you again. I told Chase to do what he had to do, just make sure that you didn't die."

His sweet words caused tears to pool in her eyes and Issy's lower lip trembled with emotion. "I'm right here, _mon trésor_. I'll be here as long as you want me to be."

House sat on the edge of the bed and cupped her face between his two hands. "I want you with me for as long as you can put up with me."

He bent down and gently kissed her lips, his tears flowing freely now. They ran down his cheeks and dripped onto Issy's face where they mingled with her own.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

"It's her, I'm telling ya."

The woman shook her head. "I don't think so."

The couple had been watching CNN for the last three hours straight, watching and rewatching the news clip about the nursing student hero who had rescued the kidnapped Cooper girls.

"What the hell is a matter with you, woman? Are you so drunk that you don't recognize your own daughter?"

The woman sniffed: "She's been gone for ten years. How can you be so sure?"

The man smirked: "They said her name is Isabelle Walker. Plus I'd know that face anywhere. It's our Issy, I'm telling ya."

"And so what if it is? We haven't seen her in ten years. Not a phone call or a post card. Not even on Christmas."

"Doesn't matter. She's still our Issy. I bet there's a reward for saving those brats. If there is, I want a piece of it. She owes us that, and if she knows what's good for her, she'll give it to us."

The woman took another gulp of her rum and coke before speaking again. "She's not going to want to see us or share that reward with us. She's long forgotten about us."

"She may have forgotten about us, but I haven't forgotten about her. Get up! Pack yourself a bag. We're going to New Jersey."


	56. Chapter 56

**A/N: I'm posting a day early as I'm going to be out of town for a couple of days and without computer. But I'll be back on Sunday and hopefully I'll be able to post my usual Sunday chapter at that time. If you are in need of more to read, please look under my list of favorite authors! There are a lot of great writers there. I want to give a plug to two of my writing buddies. Snarkland78 is writing a hysterically funny Janet Evanovich/House MD crossover called Prime Numbers. If you are a Stephanie Plum/Grandma Mazur fan, I urge you to read it, but don't eat while you read. I don't want any of you to choke with laughter! I almost did! And my friend Laniki is currently posting a sweet love story called Holiday in a Small Town, but you must start with A Weekend in Philadelphia as that is the start of the story arc. I especially love that particular fic for a group of ladies who make a recurring appearance in the story. If you want to know who they are, PM me or Laniki and we'll tell ya. And if you are into Quatum Leap, I urge you to read her Crossover fic, A House Leap. Enjoy! Thank you for reading. Hope you are having a great summer and staying cool!**

**Chapter 56 **

Issy knew that there was more that he hadn't told her yet, but this bit of news was enough for now. They held each other as best as they could, considering all of her injuries and the IV lines, and kissed until the need for air overpowered the desire to remain lip-locked with each other. After a few more sweet kisses, House rang for a nurse to bring some morphine. He gave her the injection and watched as she dozed off. As he headed into the bathroom, he actually felt somewhat lighter as if a huge burden had been lifted off of his shoulders. Issy was not upset with him concerning the surgical consent. He still needed to tell her about the other injuries, but that could wait until tomorrow. After brushing his teeth and taking a leak, House climbed back into the recliner. He reached through the bedrails, took Issy's hand in his, and then he fell into a deep dreamless sleep.

_Sunday June 1, 2008_

Issy slowly eased into consciousness, still floating a bit in a morphine haze. The pain had awakened her around 5AM and Greg had given her another shot. Glancing at the clock, she saw that it was only 7:30, way too early to wake Greg on a Sunday morning, especially without coffee. The pain wasn't too bad at the moment, so she decided to let him sleep.

The tightness on her chest bothered her. It wasn't horribly painful, just really irritating. She wondered what had happened. For some reason the sensations seemed strangely familiar. All of a sudden, it hit her. When her breasts had been stitched up after Mancini's attack, they had felt tight like this, only this time it seemed a hundred times worse. Could it be?

_Oh no!_

With her right hand, she tugged down the top of her hospital gown. Underneath a standard post-surgery bra, her chest was covered with bandages. She peeled back enough of the tape to peek underneath. There was a long row of stitches across the top of her right breast. They looked so dark against her pale skin. But the tightness wasn't contained to that one area; it was spread across her whole chest. Issy's adrenalin surged and she pulled harder on the tape.

The scream escaped her lips before she could stop it. Her breasts were purple with bruises and hideously swollen; they were covered with zipper-like rows of stitches. Her once perfect breasts now looked like something out of a horror movie.

Her scream woke House from his slumber. He opened his eyes and immediately took in the scene. "Oh, crap! Issy, why did you do that? Why did you have to look?"

He lumbered out of the recliner as quickly as he could and moved over to the bed. Issy's eyes were wide with horror and her breath was coming in short little gasps. House gently removed her hands from the bandages and covered her up as best he could, all the while making soothing sounds.

Tears streaming down her face, she looked up at him. "Greg, I look horrible! I look like Frankenstein's monster or something."

He sat on the bed and stroked her face. "It looks bad right now, but it will heal up, just like before. It will look better after the bruises fade and the stitches come out."

Issy was too agitated to be easily soothed. "This isn't like before. This is one hundred times worse! These are huge cuts and there are so many of them. How many are there?"

House reluctantly said: "Five on the left and two on the right."

Issy's mouth dropped open in a silent scream. After a moment for his words to sink in, she asked: "Why? Why did he do this to me?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. The EMS said that it looked like he was trying to cut your breasts off. Who knows what was going through his warped brain?"

Suddenly it dawned on him. Issy had said that the bastard had tried to rape her but had been impotent. Was it possible that he was trying to cut off her breasts to make her appear more childlike and thus more appealing in his perverted eyes? He shuddered at the thought.

In her agitated state, Issy started to stutter. "I l-look horrible. You must t-think I'm s-so ugly now. I've got all these s-scars."

He cupped her cheek with one hand. "Baby, you will never be ugly to me."

She violently shook her head. "You used to s-say that I had s-such p-perfect breasts. Not anymore."

Despite the fact that he had always mocked people who spoke these types of platitudes, he found himself doing the same thing. "Shhhh. It's going to be alright. It won't look so bad after the stitches come out and the bruises fade."

His words did nothing to soothe her. "I'm really d-damaged goods now. I'm just an ugly whore. It's a good t-thing that I d-don't d-dance for a living anymore. No one w-would w-want to hire me."

_Oh Christ, why was she even thinking about that part of her life? That horrid chapter was over now. She was mere weeks away from becoming a nurse._

Suddenly Issy's agitation increased even more. "Ohmigod! What day is today?"

"It's Sunday, baby. Why?"

The monitor went off. Issy's BP and heart rate were climbing rapidly. She cried out frantically: "I need to call my advisor. I missed the last day of my rotation. I have papers to turn in this week. I _have_ to finish school. There's no way I can go back to dancing now!"

He cupped her face with both hands. "Easy, baby. Your blood pressure is going through the roof. You gotta calm down. Trust me, you are _never_ going back to dancing. You're going to be a nurse. You will finish school, but you are going to be laid up for a little while first."

"How long?"

"It will probably be five to seven days before you can get out of the hospital."

"No, no. I can't take that long. There are only two weeks left of school. I have to finish, Greg. I'm too close to the end now."

"Issy, they are going to have to make some allowances for you. Your injuries are severe; you can't just pick up and go right back. You haven't even been able to get out of bed yet. Even when you get discharged, you'll need to recover at home for another four or five weeks."

She gasped: "That long?"

"The standard recovery time from a hysterectomy is six weeks. Your arm will be in a cast for at least that long."

Issy felt the bile rise up in her throat. She should have known that she would never reach her goal. She was so close, close enough to see the finish line and yet, she was not going to get there now.

She choked out: "What if they won't make allowances for me?"

House said firmly: "They will if they know what's good for them. You only missed one day of your rotation. That won't be a big deal. And didn't you tell me that you finished those papers already?"

She nodded: "They are on my laptop."

He gave her a small smile. "Problem solved. We'll get Wilson to bring your laptop here and you can e-mail your papers in. I'm sure your advisor already knows what happened, but we'll call her tomorrow and explain everything."

House tenderly kissed away the remnants of tears on her face. "It's going to be fine, baby. You'll see. You will graduate. Let's get you back on your feet so that you are feeling well enough to get your diploma with the rest of your class. I still wanna see you in your cap and gown. Wilson and I are going to be in the audience cheering for you."

Issy smiled back at him. Despite her horrible injuries, Greg still seemed to want to be with her. He wasn't tossing her aside. He had said, '_we'll_ get Wilson to pick up your laptop, _we'll_ call your advisor'. _We. Plural. The two_ _of them. _Even before these injuries, she had been too afraid to hope that their relationship might continue after graduation. And yet, here she was, physically damaged in such a horrible fashion and he was acting so lovingly towards her. He seemed to be indicating that he wanted her to stay with him. Maybe, just maybe things would work out after all.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson dropped by a short while later bearing Egg McMuffins and coffee for breakfast. The food smelled more appealing to Issy than the hospital oatmeal that House was trying to get her to eat, so he gave her one of his. The smell of the Canadian bacon didn't sit well with her, so House took her muffin apart and Issy ate the half with just the egg. Naturally House finished the other half for her, but he was pleased that she was able to eat as much as she did.

He teased: "Bet that tasted better than the oatmeal."

"Yeah, it did, but I'm stuffed from just that."

"You gotta take it slow. Remember, we just extubated you yesterday. Don't be in such a rush. You're doing great so far."

Dr Lane breezed into the room just after they finished eating. "Hey, Issy, how are you feeling? How's the arm?"

Issy glanced down at her left arm. "Hi, Dr. Lane. It's OK, I guess. It still hurts, but not as much as it did yesterday."

"Let me take a look at it."

The swelling was down so Lane decided to go ahead and cast it. "Once the cast is set, the arm will be stable enough that you'll be able to get out of bed from my point of view."

Issy nodded: "I want to get out of bed as soon as I can. My graduation is in two weeks and I want to be there."

"Well, let's get you on that road."

The nurse brought the necessary supplies and Lane set about putting the cast on Issy's arm. While he was doing that, House and Wilson slipped out into the hall and House gave his friend an update on what had transpired in the last 12 hours.

Wilson shook his head: "Well, that was an awful way for her to find out about the stab wounds, but at least she took the news about the hysterectomy well."

House nodded: "Better than I expected. Right now, she's really worried about school and if they are going to let her finish."

"Why wouldn't they let her finish? She missed one day of rotation. I'm sure that's not a big deal."

"Issy hasn't had a lot of things go well in her life. Until she has that diploma in hand, she is going to fear the worst will happen. I need you to go to our place and get her laptop. Her last assignments are on it, and she needs to email them in."

"No problem. You need anything else from the apartment?"

"Yeah, you may as well bring me a few more changes of clothes. I'm not going home until Issy does. I think her bathrobe is hanging on the back of the bedroom door. Grab that too. Hopefully she will be walking the halls in a day or two."

"I'll head on over there now."

"Actually, why don't you hang out with Issy while Lane is finishing the casting? I'll grab a shower while you two keep her company."

"Fine. I'll go to your place when you get back from the locker room."

They went back into the room. Issy was chatting amicably with Lane while the cast was being applied and House felt relieved that her mood seemed improved. He grabbed his bag of clothes and said: "I'm going to hit the locker room and take a shower. I'll be right back."

Issy gave him a smile and House headed out. While he was relieved that Issy seemed to be handling the news about her injuries fairly well, he couldn't help but feel apprehensive about the upcoming meeting with the Cooper family. It couldn't be avoided, both Issy and Abby needed this, but House knew that he would feel relieved when it was over. Hopefully that would be the last big emotional upheaval that Issy would have to deal with.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

"Greg says he is going to make you come to my graduation."

Lane had finished casting her arm and had just left. Issy was half-teasing Wilson about attending her graduation, but a part of her really wanted to know if he would come.

Wilson chuckled: "Well, it's not like he has to twist my arm. I'll be happy to attend if you can get a ticket for me."

Issy tried to keep her tone light. "You would, really? It'll be kinda boring, doncha think?"

"Naw, I'll get to watch all the cute girls in your class get their diploma. You can point out the nice ones to me, maybe introduce me to one or two."

Issy's eyes lit up. "Oh, I can certainly do that. There's this one girl that I think you'd really like. Her name is Natalie and."

The door slid open and both pairs of eyes shifted that way. Despite the fact that it was Sunday morning, Dr. Cuddy was dressed in her usual workday fashion: low-cut blouse, tight pencil skirt and four-inch Manolo Blahnik heels.

The Dean gave Issy a big smile as she walked towards the bed. "I heard that you were awake. So how's our little hero doing?"

Issy blushed: "Hero? I'm no hero."

Cuddy gave her an appraising look. "That's what they are calling you all over the news."

Issy frowned: "The news? What do you mean?"

Wilson was furiously shaking his head, but Cuddy paid him no mind. "You haven't seen the news? House hasn't told you?"

"Told me what?"

Cuddy tilted her head in thought. "I think one of the headlines read: 'PPTH nursing student saves two girls from pervert dad'. You're this week's hero."

Issy looked at Wilson: "What is she talking about?"

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck. _House was going to be so pissed._ "Uh, you kinda made the news."

"The news? I'm on the news? But why?"

Cuddy replied: "Because you are a hero. You saved those girls from their father."

"No, I didn't. _All_ I did was escort them into the ER and take them to Dr. Cameron. I'm no hero."

"You may not think so, but everyone else does. You _knew_ that they had been abused. You saw through the lies that their father had told the girls about their mother and you called her. Everyone wants to know how you _knew_ to do that. And what you did with your cell phone to aid in your own rescue was amazing. Everyone wants to hear your side of the story."

Issy's eyes widened even more. "They wanna talk to me?"

"Of course they do. Reporters have been camped out here ever since the ambulance brought you in."

Issy shook her head. "No. I don't want to talk to any reporters. I don't want to talk about it at all."

Cuddy gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sure that it was very traumatic for you, but talking about it will help."

The door slid open again and House stepped into the room. He frowned at the presence of his boss. Then he saw the distressed look on Issy's face and asked: "What the hell is going on?"

Issy turned to House, her eyes pleading for help. "Greg, Dr. Cuddy says that there are _reporters_ here to talk to me. I don't want to talk to them. I'm no hero. I was just doing my job."

House moved swiftly to the bedside. "You don't have to talk to anyone that you don't want to. Dr Cuddy and our wonderful security staff will be happy to keep them at bay for you, isn't that right, Dr. Cuddy?"

Cuddy hissed: "Hou-use."

"You heard Issy. She doesn't want to talk to the reporters. There is nothing more to say."

"House, this is great publicity for the hospital. "

"Great publicity for the hospital? You think _that_ argument would sway my opinion? And how do you figure that it's _great _publicity? A pedophile with a knife kidnaps one of _our_ nursing students in _our_ emergency room and drags her past several of _our_ security guards. How the hell does this make _our _hospital look good?"

"Try a different spin on it. One of our nursing students is clever enough to figure out that these girls had been kidnapped and abused. She did her best to get them the treatment and protection that they needed. Unfortunately she was kidnapped and injured by the pedophile, but in the end, the police killed him. Our nursing student was rescued and the children were reunited with their mother."

House snarled: "That spin puts _everything_ on Issy and nothing on this hospital."

"As a student here, she is an extension of this hospital and thus it makes us look good."

He could barely keep his anger under control. "Your logic is warped and you are not going to exploit my girlfriend for any publicity stunt."

Issy piped up: "I don't want to talk to any reporters."

Cuddy cajoled: "Issy, why not? Don't you want people to read about this? This is a heart-warming human-interest story. Other people with kidnapped children will take comfort from this story and think that if these kids were saved, maybe somewhere out there is someone who can save their kid too."

Issy stated in an emphatic tone: "I did what anyone would have done if confronted with the same situation. I didn't do anything special. I just did my job."

Wilson put in his two cents. "I think you should just issue a statement. _'Issy's injuries prevent her from speaking to the press at this time. She is very happy that the girls are home with their mother and glad that she could play a small role in that reunion. She feels that her actions were not so remarkable, that she just did what anyone else would have done if confronted with the same situation'."_

Issy nodded her head. "That's sounds good."

House snarled: "There you go, Cuddy. That's what you tell the press. Issy is not granting any interviews."

After a glance around the room, Cuddy knew that she had hit a stone wall on this subject. "Fine, I'll issue your statement, but I hope when you are feeling better that you'll change your mind."

Issy shook her head. "I don't think so. What I'm hoping is that in a week or so, the press will have found some other breaking news to cover and I'll be forgotten. Right now, I just want to concentrate on getting well."

She gave the Dean a polite smile. "Thank you for coming to see me, Dr. Cuddy. It was very nice of you."

Cuddy took the hint and edged towards the door: "I'll drop in and see you tomorrow. Get some rest."

House muttered: "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out."


	57. Chapter 57

**A/N: Back from vacation! Thank you for your patience and for all your lovely reviews!**

**Chapter 57 **

"Greg, when Dr. Cuddy said it was all over the news, what exactly did she mean by that? It's just in the local news, right?"

House shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. Wilson said he saw it on CNN."

Wilson nodded: "It was on all the major networks. It was in the local papers and in the New York Times. I wouldn't be surprised if you appear on the cover of People magazine next week."

Issy's eyes widened: "They have a photo of me?"

House nodded: "Somehow they got a copy of your student ID photo."

In a hushed tone, Issy said: "Oh my god."

Her complexion had paled. House rushed to reassure her. "Issy, it'll be OK. We'll keep the reporters out. I'll make Cuddy post a guard on your door to keep them away."

She shook her head. "It's too late."

"What do you mean, baby?"

"It's _already_ out there. It's _national_ news."

Issy glanced quickly at Wilson and then back at House. "I don't want _certain_ people to know my whereabouts. _Ever!_ And now I'm on the national news! They'll know where I am."

_Who is she afraid of? Mancini knows where she is, if he wanted to mess with her again, but he's left her alone since the first incident. So who?_

_Oh, fuck._

_Is she still afraid of her stepfather after all these years? _

The monitors beeped as Issy's heart rate climbed. "I gotta get out of here. I don't want to be found."

Wilson said in a soothing voice: "Issy, you're still in ICU. There's no way you can be discharged yet."

She shot House a pleading look. "Greg, I want to go home. Please. Can't you take care of me at home?"

House shook his head. "It's too soon, Iss. You need to be here for a while. I'll take you home as soon as I can, but I think you're actually safer here. Seriously, we can post a guard at your door and make sure that no reporters or anyone else gets in here."

Issy's lower lip trembled and then she burst into tears.

House suppressed a sigh. How much more was his girl going to have to take? He jerked his head towards the door and said to Wilson: "Out. Guard the room. Don't let anyone in. We need some alone time."

His friend nodded: "You got it. I'll be right outside if you need me."

Wilson drew the curtain closed so that they could have some privacy and then let himself out. After closing the door to Issy's room, he leaned up against the wall and prepared himself for a long wait.

+++ HOUSE MD +++++++

House kicked off his shoes and carefully climbed into the bed next to Issy. It took a little bit of doing with the IV and catheter lines, but he managed to get settled and gently pulled her into his arms. With her head resting on his shoulder, Issy grabbed his shirt in a death grip and sobbed until the front was damp with her tears. House stroked her hair and planted tiny kisses on her forehead until she cried herself out.

"I'm sorry."

"Baby, you have absolutely nothing to be sorry about. Why are you so afraid of it being on the national news? Are you afraid that Frank will find you?"

Her answer was a tiny whisper. "Yes."

"It's been ten years since you left home. Do you think he'd still come looking for you?"

"I don't know. He might. I just prefer that he not know where I am."

"I understand but all we can do now is damage control. I'll talk to Cuddy about extra security measures. Someone will always be with you while you're here. If I have to leave for some reason, I'll make sure that Wilson, Chase, Taub, _someone_ will be here with you. There's no way that he or any of those damn reporters will be able to get in here."

She let out a sigh. "Thank you."

He tenderly kissed her forehead again. House desperately wanted to wrap her up tightly in his arms, but feared causing her any pain. As it was, it was hard to know where to touch her with the broken arm, ribs and the sutured wounds.

"Are you OK like this? Are you in pain?"

Issy clutched his shirt tightly. "A little bit, but please don't go. It's so nice having you next to me. It makes me feel better."

"I'm not going anywhere."

They lay in silence for a few minutes, House dropping little kisses on Issy's forehead and gently stroking her back. He had one more bombshell to drop on his girlfriend and perhaps this was the right time to do it. Issy might feel a little safer knowing that Wilson knew the real reason for being so protective of her. Plus he needed to get it off his chest.

Finally he summoned up his courage and started: "I need to tell you something else. When you were kidnapped, I thought I was never going to see you again. First the cops lost your trail and then you called, but you were being taken into that abandoned motel. I didn't think that the cops would get to you in time. I went back to my office and started drinking. Wilson followed me and started spouting platitudes that it would be OK, that you'd get rescued. I just kept slamming down shots of bourbon. I fucked up, Issy. I only did it because I thought you were lost to me. I would have never done it otherwise."

Issy was completely puzzled. "What are you talking about, Greg?"

"I broke the promise that I made to you. You asked me never to tell anyone and I did. I told Wilson how we really met, the truth about the bet, and I told him about your childhood."

Issy's face paled. "He knows all of that? Oh, my god, how am I ever going to face him again? He must think I'm so disgusting."

House squashed that train of thought quickly. "Why would he think that? Your stepfather raped you when you were a child and that makes you a disgusting person? Is that what you're going to tell Abby when she comes by? Was it Abby's fault that her father raped her? Was it Maddie's?"

"No, of course not. They are just little children."

"Just as _you_ were once yourself. If you believe that it wasn't their fault, how can you think that it was yours?"

He could see her internal struggle to come to terms with his words. He knew that it would take a long while to sink in but at least the seed had been planted. Perhaps in time, Issy would come to believe that it hadn't been her fault after all.

"But the bet? My former profession?"

House shrugged: "What about it? You did what you had to do to survive. You worked hard to pull yourself out of that situation. You are an amazing person and I'm not the only one who thinks that. Wilson is impressed by you, too."

"Does anyone else know?"

"Nope. He's the only one and he is sworn to secrecy. You wanna pay me back for running my mouth? You can tell him the stuff about me."

Issy shook her head. "No. You told him under emotional distress. If you had merely wanted to spill the beans, you could have done it a long time ago, but you didn't. I'm kinda embarrassed to face him again, but as long as he doesn't tell anyone, I'll deal with it."

House pressed his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry, I never wanted to hurt you this way."

"I know. You didn't do it on purpose."

He gave her a gentle kiss. "You are the best person I know. I love you, Issy."

Issy felt such a constriction in her chest that she was sure that she was having a heart attack. Surely, she didn't hear him correctly. "W-what did you s-say?"

He gave her a small smile. "I love you, Issy-belle. _Je t'aime, mon trésor."_

He paused for a moment to let that sink in. "Do you remember the last words you said to me before you disconnected the phone?"

Issy closed her eyes and whispered: "Y-yes."

"Did you mean it?"

She nodded.

He placed his finger under her chin and tilted her head up. "Look at me. Tell me again."

She opened her eyes. They were brimming with tears. "I didn't think that you would feel that way."

He swiftly interrupted: "But I do. Do you?"

One lone tear ran down her face as she nodded. "I love you, Greg. I love you so much."

He smiled and kissed her again. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was afraid; I thought you'd laugh in my face. I thought there was no way that you could love a whore like me."

House's jaw tightened. "I don't want you to ever call yourself that again. You are not _that word_. You are an artist, a runner and two weeks away from becoming a nurse. You are my girlfriend, and the sweetest woman I've ever known. That's who you are, Isabelle Walker."

Issy was stunned by his words. It was a few minutes before she could speak again.

"I can't believe that you feel the same way. Why didn't you tell me before now?"

"I wanted to; I wanted to call off the bet months ago, but I wasn't sure that you would let me support you while you finished school. So I thought I would just keep things the same until you graduated and then I'd tell you."

He paused and then admitted: "Plus I wasn't sure that a young vital woman like yourself could love an old cripple like me."

She tenderly stroked his cheek. "You know that I don't see you that way."

"I know. I don't know why, but I'm thankful that your vision is not so great. I'm never taking you to an ophthalmologist. Stick with your view of me through the rose-colored glasses."

Issy gave him a loving smile. "I see you and I love the man you are. Despite your prickly exterior, the man inside is the sweetest man I've ever known."

"I am _not_ sweet."

Just before she pressed her lips to his, Issy whispered: "Yes, you are, but don't worry. I won't tell a soul."


	58. Chapter 58

**A/N: A rather long chapter, but there was no good place to break it. Hope you don't mind. And it's a day early!**

**Chapter 58**

After Issy dozed off, House carefully climbed out of the bed and wandered out into the hallway. Wilson shot him a questioningly look.

"She's afraid of being on national news because she's afraid her stepfather will see her and come after her."

"After all these years?"

House shrugged: "She's terrified of him. I told her that one of us would be with her at all times. And, I told her that I had told you, well, everything."

"How did she take that?"

"Not so good. She's really embarrassed about it, believes that you will think badly of her."

Wilson protested: "That is so not true."

"I know that; you know that, but convincing Issy of that is something else. Most sexually abused children believe that it is their fault. It was something _they_ did, or maybe something that they didn't do. Abby Cooper is not even 12 and she believes that, on top of everything else, that she is responsible for getting Issy injured."

"Adult rape victims also have issues with taking responsibility for the pervert's actions. 'If I just hadn't gone to that party. If I just hadn't gotten drunk'."

"If I just hadn't run out of milk and gone to the grocery store, yeah, yeah, I get it, Wilson. The problem is that _Issy doesn't get it,_ not yet anyway."

Wilson said in a hesitant tone: "Maybe she needs to talk to a professional."

House smirked: "Afraid to mention psych treatment to me? Guess I can't say I blame ya, after all the bad-mouthing that I've done about the profession. But, it might be good for Issy. I just don't know if she would do it."

"One step at a time. Let's get her physically well and then you can broach that subject."

House nodded: "I'm going to go take a nap with my girl. When you're at our apartment, look in the bathroom for a makeup case. Issy wants that. She wants to look nice when the girls come to visit so that they don't think she's too injured. Bring me a sandwich and something light for Issy to eat on your way back."

House turned and walked back into Issy's room. Summarily dismissed, Wilson headed off to the elevators to run the requested errands.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Laden with bags, Wilson returned about two hours later. He reached into one of the bags, pulled out a phone charger and tossed it to House.

"Your phone is dead. Your mother's been trying to reach you for two days."

House frowned: "How do you know that?"

"She called the apartment while I was there."

"And you picked up?"

Wilson sighed: "You didn't hear the message she was leaving. _'Greg, this is Mom again. I'm been calling you for two days. You're not picking up your cell; there's no one in your office and you're not home. I'm really worried.'_ And that's when I picked up."

House pulled his phone out of his pocket; sure enough, it was completely dead. After plugging it in to the charger, he wigwagged his fingers at Wilson: "Gimme your phone."

Wilson handed his phone to House, who immediately took it out into the hall to place his call.

Issy piped up: "Why is his Mom worried?"

"She's seen the news which mentions that you have 'undisclosed injuries' and she was concerned with how you are doing."

Issy frowned: "Oh."

Intrigued by the expression on her face, Wilson commented: "You seem puzzled by that."

Issy shrugged: "She only met me once. I don't know why she'd be so worried about me."

"You're her only son's girlfriend. It's natural that she would be worried about you."

"Oh."

Taking note of her continuing bewilderment, Wilson went on: "Moms worry. That's what they do and House's Mom is very good at that."

Issy bit her lip: "I didn't have a very good Mom."

She had a faraway look on her face; Wilson wondered what to say to that statement, but decided it was best to let her take the lead in any conversation about her past. He started pulling items out of the bag instead, to give her a little space.

After a minute's silence, she said: "James?"

Wilson's head perked up; she never called him by his first name. "Yes, Issy?"

"Greg told me that he told you about, you know, my past. I'd never told anyone before Greg and I'm really uncomfortable with people knowing about it. I need your promise that you won't tell anyone, OK?"

In his most sincere tone, Wilson replied: "You have my solemn promise. I have not told anyone, and I never will."

Issy seemed to ponder this and then she nodded: "OK. Thanks."

House walked back in just then and after handing Wilson's phone back, he sat down on the edge of the bed and picked up Issy's hand. "Mom says hi. The mention of your undisclosed injuries on the news really worried her. She wanted to fly out and help take care of you, but I told her that it wasn't necessary at this point, that you would be in the hospital for several more days."

"You want her to come out?"

"Naw, but that will put her off for a few days. I had to promise to charge my phone and give her daily updates, though. When you get released, I'll let her know that you're doing fine and we don't need any help. Hopefully, that will appease her."

He squeezed her hand and then said: "My dad said you were very brave. That's a big complement coming from him."

Issy opened her mouth but no words came out. House smiled in understanding. "Yeah, I know. So what did you bring us to eat, Wilson?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy managed to eat almost a whole container of matzoh ball soup and half of a potato knish. In addition to his usual Reuben, House polished off the rest of her food. "Good going, sweetheart. We'll have you back on pizza by the end of the week."

They still had an hour before the Coopers would arrive. House got Issy into a clean gown, washed her face and brushed some dry shampoo through her hair. Then he handed her the makeup case and a mirror and said: "The rest is up to you. I can't do this part. Wilson might be able to give you a hand, though. He's much more girly than I am."

Wilson protested: "I don't know the first thing about applying makeup."

House smirked: "Oh yeah, what about that time in college where you?"

His best friend interrupted him before he could finish. "I was in a play! Naturally you have to wear theatrical makeup when you are on stage."

House rolled his eyes: "Yeah, whatever. You still know more about makeup than I do."

Issy laughed, a sound that brought a wonderful joy to House's heart. "If one of you would just hold the mirror for me, I think I'll be able to manage it myself."

After applying a little blush, eyeliner and mascara, Issy felt that she looked much better. She asked if it would be OK to remove the nasal cannula during the visit to help further her 'well' appearance and House approved the request for that short time period.

Precisely at 2PM, the nurse came to the door to announce that Issy had visitors. Wilson quickly removed the nasal cannula and set it to the side while House instructed the nurse to let them in.

The trio walked slowly into the room; Mrs. Cooper was holding each girl by the hand as if they might disappear if she let go for a moment. Little Maddie was also holding her bear and trying to hide her face behind it. The girls took in their surroundings; they had met House before but when they saw Wilson, they pressed closer to their Mom.

Wilson noticed their subtle movements and excused himself, saying he had some paperwork to do in his office.

The girls seemed to relax slightly after he left. They had met House before so they weren't as uncomfortable with him, but they continued to cling tightly to their mother. Mrs. Cooper's face was a myriad of emotions as she stared at Issy. Finally she introduced herself: "I'm Elizabeth Cooper."

"I'm Issy Walker. It's nice to meet you. You have two very nice daughters."

The woman's lip trembled: "Thanks to you, I have them back again."

House saw the impending waterworks and he hastened to get up from the chair. "Why don't you sit here? It will be more comfortable for you while conversing."

House moved over to a spot on the far wall, out of the visitors' line of sight. From there he could listen in, but it would give them the illusion of a private conversation.

Mrs. Cooper smiled her thanks and sank into the chair. Abby stood on her left side and Maddie was on her right, with her face pressed into her mother's lap.

There was silence for a moment, and then Mrs. Cooper said: "I don't know how to thank you for everything that you did for us. I read your statement in the paper, but believe me, you played _much more_ than a small role in this reunion and what you did _was_ remarkable. How did you know to try to call me?"

House wondered that too and he awaited her answer almost as anxiously as Mrs. Cooper did.

Issy thought for a moment and then said: "What Abby told me about the situation just didn't add up. How could you go from being such a devoted Mom with no boyfriend in sight, to dumping your kids on your ex-husband to get remarried? It just didn't make sense to me, so I figured that he had grabbed the kids and then lied to them about you. If they thought you didn't want them anymore, they would stop asking for you and be more compliant and amenable to his demands."

Her answer made House wonder again about Issy's own father. Why would a devoted father, who had just promised his beloved daughter a puppy, take off without a word? Just like this current scenario, there had to be more to that story than what Issy knew.

Issy went on: "So I played my bet. I figured if it were the truth, you would make excuses and not want to talk to them, but you reacted exactly the way I thought you would. What he had told the girls was all lies."

And that's exactly what House thought about the whole mystery surrounding the disappearance of Issy's Dad. It had to be a pack of lies. Like Abby and Maddie, Issy just didn't know what the truth was. He decided that after Issy got better, he would send Lucas back to Ohio and have him shake down her mother. She had to know the answer and after all this time, Issy deserved to know the truth.

House tuned back into the conversation at hand. Mrs. Cooper was once again expressing her thanks to Issy and Issy was downplaying her part in the whole drama.

Issy then focused her attention on the children. "It's good to see you girls again. Maddie, do you remember me?"

The small child peeked up at Issy and nodded her head.

Issy went on: "How's Mr. Fuzzy? Is he feeling better?"

She nodded again. Then she whispered: "It doesn't hurt when he goes pee-pee anymore."

"Oh, that's really good, Maddie. I'm sure Mr. Fuzzy is happy about that."

The girl gave her a small smile. "Me too."

"I bet you are looking forward to going home and back to your own room."

At the mention of her bedroom, Maddie perked up. "Mama says all my ponies are still there. She's been taking care of them for me."

"That's great. How many ponies do you have?"

The child counted off on her fingers. "I have four of them. I have Pinkie-Pie, Rainbow Dash, Sweetie Belle and Starsong. Pinkie-Pie is my favorite. I like pink. It's my favorite color."

Abby burst out, interrupting her little sister. "Issy, are you mad at me?"

Issy looked at the older child; Abby was on the brink of tears. "No, sweetheart. Why would you think that I'd be mad at you?"

"Cuz if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be in the hospital. If I hadn't brought Maddie to the ER, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

In a gentle voice, Issy replied: "You are not the one who hurt me."

"I know that, but it's cuz I came to the ER that my dad ended up following us here and then you got hurt, so it's my fault."

"No, it's not your fault. Your sister was hurt and you had to take her to the doctor."

"But dad,,,"

"Abby, your dad hurt me, not you. All you did was try to find a doctor for your little sister. You had no way of knowing that he would follow you to the ER and that he would do all the things that he did. I'm hurt because of him, not you."

The child gave a half-hearted shrug and Issy could tell that she was not buying this in the slightest.

"Abby, who's in charge? Grownups or kids?"

In a reluctant tone, she answered: "Grownups."

"That's right. Grownups are in charge. They are the ones ultimately responsible for whatever happens, good or bad. Your dad was the one responsible for everything that has happened to you ever since that day he picked you up at school. You had no choice in the matter, did you? Would you have left your Mom and gone away from St. Louis if he had given you a choice?"

Abby shook her head. "No."

"Right, that's because you didn't get to make the decisions; he did. And he chose to do all those things, whether you wanted him to do them or not."

She cried out: "I didn't want him to do those things, but he'd hit me if I didn't."

Issy hastened to comfort her. "I know, I know. Believe me, I know. Would you come here and sit next to me on the bed?"

Without saying a word, Abby complied with her request. Issy didn't like seeing her immediate acquiescence but this wasn't the time or place to deal with that.

"Abby, most of the people in the world are good people, but there are some people who are bad."

Bitterly, she said: "Like my dad?"

"Yes, that's right. Like your dad. And my stepfather."

House's ears perked up. _Was Issy actually going to talk about her own childhood?_

"Your stepfather was bad?"

Issy nodded her head. "Yes, he was. Those things that your dad made you do, that you didn't want to do, well, my stepfather made me do those things too when I was around your age."

Abby gasped: "You mean, he made you touch _it_ and do stuff to it?"

"Yes, that's right. I had to do all kinds of stuff to it. If I didn't do it good enough, he'd hit me. Sometimes even if I did it right, he'd hit me anyway. I didn't want to do those things, but I had no choice. He was the grownup and he forced me to do it, just like your dad made you do those things."

"That's awful."

"Yes, it was awful, and it was awful for you and Maddie too. But do you understand what I'm saying to you? It wasn't _your_ fault any more than it was _my_ fault that it happened. Your dad and my stepfather were the grownups; we were the children. It was _their_ fault. They and they alone are responsible for what happened to us. The children, Maddie and you and me, are not to be blamed. Everything that happened was your dad's fault. He's the one who hurt me, not you. Do you understand?"

Abby gave a little nod, but Issy still feared that she was not getting through to her.

"I want you to say it; it's was all dad's fault, not mine."

Abby mumbled the words so softly that no one could hear her.

"I can't hear you Abby, louder this time."

Her volume was barely above a whisper, but at least Issy could hear the words clearly this time.

"It was all dad's fault, not mine."

"Good, and again."

Abby rolled her eyes up to the ceiling and repeated the words: "It was all dad's fault, not mine."

That time, her mother and sister could hear her say the words.

Issy was pleased, but she wanted a little bit more. "Excellent. One more time. Say it like you're telling the whole world."

A sob escaped Abby's mouth and she screamed out the words: "IT WAS ALL DAD'S FAULT, NOT MINE."

With that, she fell forward and wrapped her arms around Issy's neck. House saw Issy wince with pain, and knew that Abby had accidentally put too much pressure on some of Issy's sore places. Issy was definitely going to need a shot of morphine when this little interlude was over. But in the meantime, despite her pain, Issy held Abby in her arms and let the child sob on her shoulder.

Abby cried for the next five minutes. Maddie started crying because her sister was crying and her mother tried to comfort her. From his position up against the wall, House could see the tears on Issy's face too. All of the waterworks was difficult for him to deal with, but he was determined not to leave Issy alone, so he managed to cope with it.

Once the crying stopped, Mrs. Cooper spoke about their plans for the future. She would get the girls settled back in their home again, find a therapist and make preparation for the coming school year. Since the girls had been out of school for a year and a half, there might be some transition issues, but Mrs. Cooper felt certain that it could all be worked out by September.

Abby piped up: "Issy, could I have your email address? If I write to you, would you write back?"

Issy said: "If it's OK with your Mom."

Abby looked expectantly at her Mom. Mrs. Cooper pondered for a moment and then agreed. Email addresses were exchanged and Abby promised to write as soon as she got home.

The good-byes were only a little teary. To House's surprise, Abby gave him a brief hug and asked him to please take good care of Issy. House promised that he would and the girls left, hand-in-hand with their mom.

Issy wiped the remnants of the tears from her cheeks and smiled at House. "Thank you for staying with me. I'm sure all the waterworks was not easy on you."

"I think it was much harder on you than on me, baby. I saw that wince of pain when Abby hugged your neck. Ready for some morphine?"

"Yes, please, I'd like to take a short nap if you don't mind. That was kinda draining."

House called out to the nurse: "I need a syringe of morphine in here."

The nurse brought it and handed it to House. He started to shoot it into her IV and then paused for a moment.

Leaning over the bed, he cupped Issy's face with his free hand. Gently stroking her cheek with his thumb, he said: "I want you to always remember the words that you told Abby. He was the adult; you were the child. It was his fault. Do you understand? It applies, not just to her, but to you also. Say it for me."

Tears brimmed Issy's eyes and she whispered: "He was the adult; I was the child. It was his fault."

"Say it again, a little louder this time."

Her lip trembled, but she managed to say the words: "He was the adult; I was the child. It was his fault."

"Good girl. Third time's the charm. Once more."

The tears flowed freely down her cheeks, but she said it once again. "He was the adult; I was the child. It was his fault."

He kissed away her tears. "Remember that, baby, always remember that. Now get some rest."

House turned and shot the morphine into her IV line. Issy's eyelids started to flutter almost immediately. Before her eyes completely closed, she managed to mumble: "I love you, Greg".

He kissed the corner of her mouth. "Right back at you, baby."

Then he tossed the used syringe into the sharps container and climbed into the recliner for his own nap.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Later that evening while House and Issy were enjoying another tub of Jello, a phone call was placed from a run-down motel on the outskirts of Trenton.

The operator answered: "Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. How may I direct your call?"

"May I have Isabelle Walker's room, please?"

There was a pause and then the operator asked: "Your name, please?"

"Frank Livingstone. I'm her stepfather."

Another pause, longer this time and then she said: "I'm sorry, sir. Your name is not on the list."

"What do you mean, my name is not on the list? I'm her stepfather. Her mother is right here. We drove all the way from Ohio to see our little girl."

"I'm very sorry, sir, but if your name is not on the list, I cannot connect you."

"What about her mother? Arlene Walker? Is her name on the list?"

A brief pause and then came the reply. "No sir, Arlene Walker is not on the list either."

"Well, if that don't just beat all. Her own parents, not even on the list! How do we get into this Fort Knox hospital and see our little girl?"

"You can call back tomorrow and ask for the Dean of Medicine, Dr. Cuddy. She has to approve all visitors for this patient. There is nothing else I can do, sir. Good night."

And with that, the operator disconnected; Frank slammed down the phone. "Can you believe it? We can't get into see our own kid."

Arlene Walker took another sip of her rum and coke and shrugged her shoulders. "Told ya she didn't want to see us. I don't know why you got so hot and bothered to come all the way to New Jersey for some damn reward that you don't even know if Issy is going to get, much less share with us."

He snarled: "Oh, she'll share it with us, if she knows what's good for her. We just have to figure out another way to get into that place to see her."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Cuddy's cell phone rang just as she was sitting down to eat her dinner. She took note of the number and flipped it open: "Dr Cuddy."

"Dr. Cuddy, this is Joyce on the switchboard. I hate to bother you on a Sunday night, but I just had some weirdo asking to be connected to Issy's room and I thought that you should know about it."

The Dean frowned: "Weirdo? What exactly did he say?"

"He claimed to be her stepfather. Said that he and Issy's mother had driven all the way from Ohio to see her and got downright aggravated when I told him that they couldn't see her since they weren't on the list."

"You didn't give out her room number or any information, did you?"

"Absolutely not. I wasn't about to give out any information to someone not on the list. I don't want that poor child disturbed after all she's been through."

Cuddy had to smile. Joyce had been with PPTH for over 25 years and she was like an over-protective grandmother to everyone.

"That was perfect, Joyce. Issy needs her rest and you know how Dr. House would feel if someone disturbed Issy."

"Boy, do I ever and it ain't good. I'm not going to be the cause of him getting all riled up. I told that guy if he wanted to see Issy that he had to call you tomorrow and get on the list."

"Well, we'll see if he does or not. It's most likely some reporter trying a new way to get into Issy's room. They have already tried to sneak in with flower and pizza deliveries. One of them claimed to have a telegram from the President. There is no telling what other tactics they will try to get their story."

"Damn reporters! They'll try anything. Well, they won't get the information from me, Dr. Cuddy. You can rest assured on that."

"We can always count on you, Joyce. Call me if there are any other problems."

"I will, Dr. Cuddy. Have a good night."

Cuddy closed her phone and picked up her fork. Imagine the nerve of those reporters, pretending to be Issy's parents to get into her room. What would they think of next? She speared a forkful of salad, put it into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. There was something about that phone call that just didn't sit right with her. It wasn't just the fact that reporters were trying to get to Issy by any possible means. It was something else, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. The more she thought about it, the more elusive the thought became. Finally she shook her head. If she hadn't figured it out in the next day or so, she'd mention it to House. He'd be able to figure out what she was missing in this little puzzle.


	59. Chapter 59

**Chapter 59**

_Monday June 2, 2008_

Issy let out a deep sigh. "Wow, who would have thought that merely sitting on the side of the bed would be so exhausting?"

It was 9 AM and all of Issy's doctors were convened in her room. Now that her arm had been casted, it was time to start getting out of bed and moving around.

Foreman gently reminded her: "You haven't been out of bed in four days. Muscles atrophy quickly."

Issy grimaced: "I didn't think that they would go that fast. I have a lot more sympathy for my patients now when they say how hard it is to get back on their feet."

Wilson chimed in: "And you're a runner. You're in better shape than most of our patients."

"So it should be easier for me. I should be able to get out of bed faster than most patients."

House rolled his eyes and commented: "Issy, you have multiple injuries and considerable pain. And pain is very fatiguing. It takes a lot out of you."

She glanced up into his eyes; he would certainly know all about that subject, living with chronic pain from his leg all these years. How did he do it? She felt like she would go nuts after just a few days of it. No wonder he needed the Vicodin; she would be screaming without the morphine injections. Chase wanted to step her down to Percocet tablets today and Issy was hoping that it would manage her pain just as well.

Chase asked: "How does it feel to sit up, Issy? Do you have any headache, any dizziness?"

She shook her head: "No, none of that. It just feels very tiring."

"That's normal. You'll build your strength again. I want you to dangle on the side of the bed several times today to start to build up your strength. Tomorrow we'll have you take a few steps and sit up in the chair. Think you can do that?"

"I could probably sit in the recliner now. When I get tired, I could just lay back and rest."

Chase chuckled: "I like an eager patient, but don't push it. You're just sitting up for the first time. Let's have you sit on the edge of the bed a few times today, and maybe this evening, we'll try having you sit in the chair for a few minutes."

"OK. Maybe tomorrow, I could take a shower? I really wanna wash my hair. That dry shampoo only does so much."

"One day at a time. Let's see if we can get you into the chair tonight and maybe a little walk down the hall tomorrow and then we'll talk about the shower. But do not wear yourself out, pushing too hard. We don't want any setbacks, do we?"

Issy shook her head: "No, Dr. Chase. My graduation is in two weeks and I want to be well enough to attend. I don't want to blow that."

Chase gave her a big smile. "We'll get you there. You sit up a few times today and I'll check back on you later this evening, alright?"

"Yes. Thanks, Dr. Chase. Thanks to all of you."

The team left, off to see their own patients in the case of Wilson and Chase and to the ER or clinic for House's team.

House glanced at the clock. "It's been long enough. Lay back down now. I don't want you to get too tired too quickly. Every two hours, you can sit up for 5 to 10 minutes. That will gradually build your strength without fatiguing you too much."

Issy nodded and with House's assistance, settled back down on the bed. That short time up had been very tiring and she promptly dozed off. House gently stroked her hair and smiled. With any luck, he'd be able to take her home by the weekend. He looked forward to sleeping in his own bed again, with his girlfriend curled up in his arms.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

This time Frank made her place the call.

"Could you connect me to Isabelle Walker's room, please?"

The operator asked: "Your name, please?"

"This is her mother, Arlene Walker."

After a moment's pause, the answer was the same as it had been the previous night. "Ma'am, I'm sorry, but you're not on the list."

Arlene pleaded: "But I'm her mother. You can't keep a mother away from her child. Just look at what my daughter did to reunite those little girls with their mother. Now, you are keeping me from my baby?"

Louise, the day shift operator, was unmoved by Arlene's words, At change of shift, she had been warned by Joyce what had happened the previous evening and she was positive that this caller was just another reporter trying to get through to Issy.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but I have my instructions. I can't put you through if you're not on the list. You can speak to Dr. Cuddy, the Dean of Medicine. Would you like me to transfer you to her?"

Arlene muttered: "No thank you," and hung up.

She looked at Frank and said: "See? I told you it would be no use."

Frank shrugged: "It was worth a shot. We'll just have to come up with another plan."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After a 45 minute nap, Issy woke up feeling somewhat refreshed and asked House for her cell phone.

"I want to call Ms. Lawson, my advisor and let her know what's going on. I want to make sure that I'll be able to graduate on time."

As it turned out, Issy's fears were unfounded. Ms. Lawson was thrilled to hear from Issy and delighted that she was recovering so quickly.

"Your classmates will be so happy to hear that you are doing so well. We've all been quite worried about you."

"Tell them I said 'hi' and that I'm recovering. I hope to be well enough to attend graduation in two weeks."

"Oh, we certainly hope so. We want you there, after all your hard work over the last two years."

"Ms. Lawson, I missed that last day of rotation."

The advisor interrupted Issy: "Oh, my dear, now don't you worry about that. You missed one day the whole year. That is not a problem, especially under the circumstances. I do need those last two papers of yours but I think we could wait for them until you are feeling better."

"Oh, but I have them. I can email them to you."

"Perfect! You will have fulfilled all the requirements needed for graduation. Just email the papers to me when you can and we'll waive your attendance for the last week of lecture. It is basically just a review before taking the nursing boards anyway. It's a shame you have to miss it, but I'll email you the lecture notes and you can study them on your own when you are feeling better."

"Oh, thank you Ms. Lawson. Thank you so much."

"It's no trouble dear. You just get better so that we can see you at graduation. Call me if you need anything."

"I will and again, thank you so much."

Issy closed the phone with a happy grin on her face.

House tilted his head and said: "Well?"

"I can't believe it. All I have to do is email her my papers. She is waiving my attendance for the last week of lectures, which is just a review anyway, and she'll email those notes to me. I'm really going to graduate, Greg. It's really going to happen."

House picked up her hand and planted a kiss on the back of it. "That's great, baby. See? I told you it was all going to work out."

"You were right. I don't know why I worry so much. I should have just listened to you. Everything is going to be OK now."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wearing a baseball cap, dark shades and a white short-sleeved, button-down shirt, Frank was sure that he looked the part of a flower deliveryman. He had blown 75 bucks on a large floral arrangement and hope that this ruse would reveal Issy's whereabouts.

He had stationed Arlene near the elevator, so that she could follow him when he headed up to 'deliver the flowers'.

His face partially hidden by the huge flower display, he walked up to the switchboard desk and announced: "Flower delivery for Isabelle Walker. What's the room number?"

Louise was still on duty and she eyed the man suspiciously. He didn't look like a reporter, but appearances could be deceiving.

"Just leave them here. Someone will take them up later."

Frank protested: "But I'm supposed to deliver them to the person whose name is on the card."

Louise replied firmly: "Not this time. Leave them here and I'll make sure that they get to her."

"You're cheating me out of a tip, you know."

Louise rolled her eyes. "Like you'd get a tip from a _patient_. Most of them don't have any money in their rooms. Just leave the flowers here; I'll arrange to have them brought up."

Frank walked away, grumbling, but it was just a part of his act. He had figured that there was only a small chance of actually getting to deliver the flowers himself. What he was counting on was Arlene following the flowers to Issy's room and reporting back to him. Her instructions were to hover nearby and follow whoever took the flowers. Once she discovered Issy's location, she would call him on the cell phone and he would attempt to meet up with her. Then they would surprise Issy. Frank smirked as he walked out of the hospital; he was _so_ looking forward to that.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Louise kept an eye on the deliveryman until he had left the building; then she picked up the phone and dialed a certain extension.

"Dr. Cuddy, this is Louise at the switchboard. Some guy was just here, trying to deliver flowers to Issy again. I'm sure it was another reporter. I made him leave the flowers at the desk and sent him away."

The Dean replied: "Good work, Louise. I'm just finishing up some paperwork and then I'll stop by and take them up to Issy."

"These reporters will stop at nothing, Dr. Cuddy. I've had three phone calls this morning for her, all of them claiming to be a 'relative' of some sort. None of the names that they gave were on the list, of course, and surprise, surprise, none of them wanted to be transferred to you."

Cuddy chuckled: "You ladies are doing a fantastic job of keeping the snoopers away from Issy. I'll be sure and tell Dr. House what a great job you are doing; that will put you on his good side."

Louise cracked: "He has one?"

Cuddy let out a small chuckle. "Believe it or not, he does."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy was visibly much more relaxed after talking to her advisor. She sat up again around noon, and proclaimed it to be less tiring than the first time. She sat for around 15 minutes and then House insisted that she lay back down again before getting too tired. She did as he requested, but insisted that she wanted to get into the chair by tonight. House's 'we'll see' attitude just egged her on and made her more determined to get moving. She flexed her feet, wiggled her toes and windshield-wipered her legs back and forth. House chuckled at her antics, but was pleased with her determination. He just needed to watch and make sure that she didn't overdo it.

Wilson dropped by a short while later with lunch. While she ate her chicken salad sandwich, Issy told him about her conversation with Ms. Lawson.

"All I have to do is email her my last two papers and I'm done! Can you believe it? I've made it! I'm going to graduate!"

Her enthusiasm was contagious and Wilson sported an ear-to-ear grin as he congratulated her. Issy seemed very close to her old self again. She polished off her sandwich and even stole a few of House's fries. When House protested, she simply giggled.

Wilson commented: "Your appetite is back. You're definitely on the mend."

House half-heartedly grumbled: "Yeah, next time she can get her own fries so that I can steal from _her_."

Wilson chuckled: "And then order will be restored to the universe."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Arlene had been waiting for over an hour. She was long ready to give up, go back to the motel and have a drink, but she knew that if she left before the flowers were delivered, Frank would be mad and that could get quite ugly.

She quietly stood in a corner of the lobby where she could observe all the comings and goings especially anyone who approached the switchboard desk. It was impossible to not notice the brunette woman as she crossed the lobby. Her low-cut blouse, tight skirt and clicking four-inch heels practically screamed _'look at me'_. Arlene felt plainer than usual staring at the attractive woman, but drab helped a person blend into the woodwork and that's what she needed to do today.

The woman spent a few minutes speaking to the same operator that had sent Frank away and then she picked up the vase of flowers and headed to the elevators. Arlene followed at a discrete distance.

There was a crowd waiting for the elevator, but Arlene managed to get into the same elevator car as the woman carrying the flowers. She heard someone address her as 'Dr Cuddy' and realized that this was the person who was in charge of who got to see Issy. Should she approach her and explain who she was? Perhaps the woman would be more sympathetic to her in person as opposed to over the phone. No, better to stick with the plan. If she deviated from the plan and it backfired, Frank would be really pissed off.

The elevator stopped at the fifth floor; Dr. Cuddy exited the elevator and turned to the left. Arlene got off the elevator just before the doors closed and again followed at a careful distance.

At the end of the hallway was a closed set of double doors. A sign suspended over the doors identified the area as the Intensive Care Unit. Dr. Cuddy flashed her ID badge in front of the reader and the doors swung open. Dr. Cuddy walked on through, but Arlene hung back, fearing exposure if she followed the woman through the doors. Was this where her daughter was? Could Issy possibly be in ICU? Was her baby more injured than the news was letting on or was the hospital just keeping her locked away from prying eyes?

Arlene pondered these questions as she watched the ICU doors, half-hiding behind a pillar. She watched people going in and out of the unit. Other employees did just what Dr. Cuddy had done; they flashed their ID badge at the reader and the doors opened. People that she presumed to be visitors picked up a phone and would ask to see someone. If the visit was allowed, the doors would open and the people would walk in. Sometimes the visit would be denied. She heard one man tell his wife: "They're doing some tests on Mother now, so we can't see her. They said to come back in about two hours." The couple walked away, discussing grabbing a bite of lunch before coming back.

Finally after 30 minutes of waiting, Dr. Cuddy emerged from ICU. She no longer had the vase of flowers in her hand, so Arlene presumed that she had given them to Issy.

That was enough confirmation in her mind as to where her daughter was. The big question was: how were they going to get behind those locked doors to see her?

Her hands were shaking and she needed a drink. Badly. She decided to report back to Frank and let him figure out how to get to Issy. He was much better at devising plans than she was.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Late that night, long after Issy and House had fallen asleep, a solitary figure let himself into his Trenton home. He let his bag drop to the floor and flipped on one lamp. His mood was sour; his time at the poker table in Atlantic City had not been as fruitful as he would have liked. Losing ten grand was not his idea of fun. After pouring himself two fingers of scotch, he started shuffling through the pile of mail and newspapers that his housekeeper had placed on the dining room table. He tossed the bills to one side and threw the junk mail right into the trash.

After refreshing his glass of scotch, he took the last four days worth of newspapers to the sofa to breeze through the local news. Due to the nature of his employment, he liked to keep abreast of local politics and events that could possibly affect his employer's business. Being an orderly man, he started with the oldest edition and removed Friday's Trenton Times from its wrapper. As he scanned the headlines and the accompanying photo, his eyes widened in surprise.

"_PPTH Nursing Student Saves 2 Girls from Pervert_ _Dad!"_

A smile cracked his face and his mood magically lifted. There was even a photo of the little whore right on the front page of the paper. Suddenly she was a hero in everyone's eyes. Angelo let out a harsh laugh. What would they think if they knew the truth about her? Would they still sing her praises if they knew she had stripped for strangers and took men into the back room of Mancini's club? She wouldn't appear to be such an angel then.

Angelo knew just the reporter to call. He'd check with Mr. Mancini in the morning and see if it was OK to leak this little tidbit, but he had a feeling that his boss would enjoy the idea as much as he did. Wednesday's headlines would look quite a bit different if Angelo got what he wanted. This would make up for losing in A.C.; hell, seeing the little whore getting her comeuppance was ten times better than winning at the card table.


	60. Chapter 60

**Chapter 60**

_Tuesday, June 3, 2008_

"I told you that I'd get to the chair today, Dr. Chase."

The young doctor chuckled: "Actually you told me that you'd get into the chair _last night_, but I'll cut you some slack on that."

With Chase and House hovering nearby in case of a misstep, and a tight grip on her IV pole, Issy had managed to take several steps around the room, finally landing in the recliner that House had been sleeping in for the past several nights.

Chase went on: "You're doing very well, Issy. I'd like you to stay in the recliner for most of the day. Sit up as much as you can and then lay back to take a nap when you're tired. I'll have the nurses come in and ambulate you a couple of times this afternoon. If you are feeling strong enough, take a few steps out in the hallway, but again don't push it. How is the Percocet working for your pain?"

He had changed her pain regiment from Morphine to Percocet yesterday and Issy seemed to be tolerating it fairly well. There was only one small problem.

"It makes me nauseous if I take it on an empty stomach. I have to eat first and then take the pill."

Chase queried: "But it's helping with the pain?"

Issy nodded. "I could use another one now, though. That little bit of walking cranked it up again."

She turned to House and gave him her most pleading look. "Would you please go to the cafeteria and get me some french fries? I could eat those and then take my pill. Dr. Chase can stay with me while you go, right, Dr. Chase?"

House narrowed his eyes at her. Why was she asking _him_ to go instead of wheedling Chase or phoning Wilson? Granted Wilson was trapped in a board meeting this morning, but he might appreciate the page to escape the tedium of Dr. Reynolds droning on and on about the budget cuts. House had the feeling that she wanted him out of the room for some reason. Was there something she wanted to talk to Chase about without his presence? He decided to let her have her privacy but vowed to get it out of her or Chase later.

House made a show of pretending to tug on his forelock. "Yeah, yeah, send the cripple on the errand. Fine, I'll hobble down to the cafeteria and get the princess some fries."

He pointed his index finger at Chase. "You be sure and stay with her until I get back."

Issy giggled at his antics, but Chase stared at House's retreating back, his mouth open in amazement. "I can't believe he didn't order me to go for him. How did you do that?"

"He knows I'm up to something. I'm sure he's planning on getting it out of one of us later. I really wanted to ask you something and I didn't want to ask in front of Greg. I don't mind so much if he finds out later; I just didn't want to ask with him in the room."

Chase pulled up the straight back chair and sat down. "What is it, Issy?"

She bit her lip and then said. "You were the one who performed the hysterectomy, right?"

"That's right. I tried to save your uterus, but it was severely damaged and you were losing a lot of blood. Medically, we all felt it was the best thing to do."

"Oh, no, that's not what I'm getting at. Greg already explained that part to me. I was wondering about, hmm, well, the broomstick."

"That's what caused the damage. It tore through your cervix, leaving it beyond repair and severely damaging your uterus. Actually, it was a lucky thing that it hadn't perforated the uterine wall or there would have been a lot more complications."

"I understand that part. But what about?"

Issy blushed and took a deep breath: "What about, hmm, inside my vagina? Is there any damage there? Will I, you know, be able to have intercourse again?"

The point of this private conversation finally dawned on Chase. Issy was worried about being able to have sex again and didn't want to ask that question in front of House.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Fortunately, the broom handle was narrow and smooth. After the hysterectomy was over, I performed a quick pelvic and I didn't find any damage to the vaginal walls. There was some swelling due to the trauma, but no cuts or other injuries. It's standard to wait six weeks after a hysterectomy before having intercourse again. By then, the swelling will be gone and you should be just fine. We'll perform another pelvic at that time and if you're having no problems, you'll get the green light to go ahead."

Issy let out a sigh of relief. "OK, that's great. Thank you."

Before Chase could respond, the door slid open and Dr. Cameron poked her head in. "Hi, are you up for a visitor?"

Issy smiled at the young doctor. "Sure, come on in."

Cameron stepped into the room and closed the door. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better. They took the catheter out today and I'm walking a bit. Hopefully I'll be able to go home by the end of the week."

"Oh, that's great news. We were so worried about you."

Cameron glanced around the room. "Where's House? I thought he wasn't leaving your side."

Issy giggled: "I sent him to get me some French fries."

Cameron's eyes bugged out. "And he went?"

Chase chuckled: "Yes, he did. Issy's got some kinda power over him. It's amazing to see."

"He just wants me to eat and get my strength back."

Cameron sputtered: "But why didn't he send Chase or get Wilson to do it?"

Issy gave her an enigmatic smile. "He knew that I wanted to ask Chase a personal question, so he went. Not that he isn't curious about the subject matter, but he knows he'll get it out of me or Chase later."

Chase queried: "If he asks me, is it alright if I tell him? After all, you do have doctor-patient confidentiality."

"It's OK for you to tell him. I just didn't want to ask it with him in the room."

Issy turned to Cameron and said: "I wanted to ask Dr. Chase if I was going to be able to have intercourse again and I didn't want to actually say the words in front of Greg. Fortunately, everything seems to be OK in that department."

Cameron nodded: "I can understand that you would want to ask that question privately. I, I."

She suddenly teared up. "I feel so bad about what happened to you."

Chase put his arm around her and Cameron leaned into his embrace.

Issy quickly said: "Don't feel bad. It's over now. I just need to recover and get my strength back. My graduation is in less than two weeks and I want to be able to walk across the stage and get my diploma."

Chase said: "With your determination, I'm sure you'll be able to do that. Cameron and I would love to attend and cheer you on if you are able to get two extra tickets."

Issy squealed with delight: "Really? Oh, that would be so fabulous! We're allowed six tickets; Greg and Wilson are coming, of course, so you can have two of the remainders."

Cameron swiped at her eyes: "That would be great. We'd love to attend. Well, I'd better get back to the ER. I'm supposed to just be on a coffee break. I'll come back and see you later."

She gave Issy a quick hug.

Issy smiled: "Thanks for coming by, Dr. Cameron. It was good to see you."

Chase asked: "Issy, you don't mind if I just nip out really quickly and walk Cameron to the elevator, do you? I'll be back in a tick."

Issy waved a hand at him. "Go ahead. I'll be sitting right here when you get back."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Cuddy accepted the handful of pink message slips from her assistant and then walked into her office. The board meeting had gone on for three hours and at least half of it was spent with Dr. Reynolds complaining about the budget cuts in his department. Now that she was alone behind closed doors, Cuddy let out a deep sigh. That man was so tiresome. She wished that he would just retire already. After all, he was close to 70. She'd rather spend the meetings listening to complaints about House than having to feign interest in Reynolds' whining about losing one of his _three_ administrative assistants. _She_ was the Dean of Medicine and she only had _one_.

She separated the pink slips into three stacks. The first stack contained messages that needed to be dealt with right away. The second stack was ones that could wait and the third stack were messages concerning attempts to contact Issy. Cuddy sighed again; it was amazing the lengths that reporters would go through to try to get a story. Her 'father' called three times, her 'mother' four. There were calls from her 'sister', 'brother' and 'cousin'. Each 'relative' gave a different name, of course, and naturally none of them were on the list because the only names on the list, besides the attending physicians, were the Cooper family. They were the only people that Issy had asked to be allowed to see her. House had claimed that she had no family and Cuddy herself remembered from Issy's school file that there had been no emergency contacts listed, so it seemed that the girl was all alone in the world.

As she flipped through the messages, her mind wandered back to Sunday night and the strange message that Joyce had called her about. Something about that particular one still nagged at her, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Cuddy pulled out all the messages and flipped back until she got to that particular one. She stared at it for a moment and then gasped as she realized what was different. This one wasn't just a generic name and relationship; this person had claimed to be her _stepfather_, not her father, and had also claimed that he and her mother had driven all the way from Ohio to see her. No other calls had been that specific. Cuddy flipped through all the messages again to be sure and then stopped in her tracks. The same name appeared in another message. On Monday morning there had been a call from a woman claiming to be Issy's mother and the name given was Arlene Walker. That's the name that the 'stepfather' gave when he called on Sunday night. Could these people really be Issy's family and if so, why didn't she want to see them? Why had House claimed that she had no family?

It could still be just another reporter's trick but there was one way to find out for sure. Cuddy snatched up the pertinent message slips and headed out to find House.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

As they stood, half-hidden behind a pillar, Frank watched the process with a keen eye. It seemed to be just as Arlene had described. For once the stupid cow got something right. Employees could flash their badge at the reader and the ICU doors would open. Visitors had to pick up the phone, ask for the person that they wanted to see and wait to be granted permission to enter. Frank knew that if they asked to see Issy that it would be denied and could alert security to their presence. He couldn't risk that. He needed to think of another way to get in.

The solution turned out to be so simple that he couldn't believe that he didn't think of it sooner. Two visitors picked up the phone and asked to see Mr. Hamilton. The doors swung open and they walked through, but before the doors could close again, another couple dashed through the entrance, bypassing the phone procedure entirely. When the next set of visitors approached the phone and rang for permission to see Mrs. Parker, Frank grabbed Arlene by the arm. When the doors opened, Frank and Arlene followed right behind Mrs. Parker's visitors. As they walked in, two young blond doctors exited the ICU at the same time. They were deep in conversation and paid no attention to the visitors. Mrs. Parker's family members turned to the right, towards Rooms 17 – 30, so Frank steered Arlene to the left towards Rooms 1 – 16.

He hissed: "If anyone asks, we are looking for Mrs. Parker's room and we must have gotten turned around. Better yet, just let me do the talking. Now, let's find Issy."

There was something going on in Room 9; it seemed that most of the personnel were crowded into that room. Frank could hear someone shouting for an intubation kit. Another nurse was seated at the desk and staring at a bank of monitors showing wavy lines. Frank knew from watching medical shows on TV that those must be heart monitors. Another woman was on the phone. This was good. Everyone seemed to be busy and no one took notice of them as they slowly wandered through the unit, peeking into each room as they looked for Issy.

It didn't take long to find her. She was in Room 7, across from the nurse's station but tucked back into a corner, which allowed that room a bit of privacy too. Issy was sitting in a chair and aiming the remote control at the TV set. Frank allowed himself a moment of satisfaction. After a long search, he had finally found his prey and she was alone and defenseless. He could see the cast on her arm and wondered what other injuries she had sustained, not because he cared, but to assess Issy's level of vulnerability.

With an evil grin on his face, Frank slowly slid the glass door open. Issy immediately turned her head to see who was there. The look of panic on her face was priceless to Frank. He'd waited ten long years to see her fear again.

"Hello little girl. Bet you're surprised to see us?"

Issy's screams stunned the ICU. Nurses were paralyzed for a brief moment and then ran to her room. What they saw shocked them. Charge Nurse Melody looked at Nurse Robin and said: "You better page House and Cuddy _now_. And call in a 'Mr. Gray' while you're at it."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

"You didn't have to walk me to the elevator, Robert. I'm fine."

"I just wanted to make sure, love. You've been so upset. This wasn't your fault. _No one_ could have foreseen this happening. You did everything you could to try to prevent her from being kidnapped and you needn't feel so guilty about what happened to her."

"I know, but I can't help it. I'm sure I'll get over it, eventually. It's just."

She started to break down again. "Oh my god, Robert, what if he had put the knife at my throat? He _asked_ me if I wanted to take her place cuz I was more his _type_. It could have been me. It could have easily been me."

Cameron finally put voice to her nightmares. It could have easily have been her or Cuddy that the bastard had grabbed. It had just been pure bad luck that Issy had been the one who ended up with the knife at her throat.

They paused in front of the elevators and Chase pulled her into his arms. "Shhh. Don't think like that. That's survivor's guilt talking. Don't think about what might have happened. It's over now. We all have to move forward as best we can and be supportive of Issy right now."

She sniffed: "I know you're right. It's just going to take me a little time."

"I know, love."

He gave her a gentle kiss. Seeing the love in his eyes made her smile and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Wanna have pizza tonight?"

Chase grinned; that was code for much more than food. 'Pizza' had been their code word for 'sex' ever since they had started sleeping together.

"That sounds great, Allie. I'm hungry for some right now."

She let out a small giggle that he stifled by planting his lips on top of hers. They were in the middle of a passionate lip-lock when the elevator doors opened and Taub stepped out.

Rolling his eyes, the short doctor asked: "I just passed House and Wilson talking to Cuddy on the first floor. Who's with Issy now?"

Chase replied: "I am."

"No, you're not. You're here in front of the elevator kissing your girlfriend. _Who_ is with Issy?"

Chase mumbled: "I was only gone a minute."

Cameron pecked his cheek and said: "I'll see you later. You better get back before House does."

She stepped into the elevator and headed back down to the ER. Chase and Taub turned and started back towards ICU. Just as the doors swung open, a blood-curdling scream filled the hallway.

Taub looked at Chase: "You better hope that's not Issy, cuz House will have your Aussie ass."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE M D+++ HOUSE MD +++

As House exited the elevator on the first floor, he saw Wilson over at the coffee cart and headed in that direction. Even though _he_ had been sent on this errand, there was nothing wrong with trying to con _Wilson_ into paying for the fries.

He slipped up behind his friend: "Boring board meeting finally over?"

Wilson rolled his eyes as he poured a small amount of skim milk into his coffee. "_Finally_. Reynolds was on a tear again. The meeting could have been an hour shorter if it wasn't for him. That man needs to be convinced to retire already."

House murmured: "Yeah, good luck with that. We'll be carrying him out feet first before he deigns to give his resignation."

"What are you doing down here anyway? Who's with Issy?"

"The princess sent me on an errand for some French fries. It's all a ruse so that she could talk to Chase in private, but I'm letting her get away with it for now."

"What do you think she wants to talk to Chase about?"

House frowned: "I don't know, but I will find out, even if I have to threaten to shave Chase's head for the info."

Wilson chuckled at the visual, but before he could open his mouth to reply, the two men heard a shout from across the lobby.

"House!"

Cuddy was stalking her way towards them, pink slips clutched in her left hand.

The older doctor rolled his eyes. "Crap! Caught by the she-witch again."

When she got within earshot, House whined: "Oh, come on. Can't you let me out of clinic duty while Issy's in the hospital? Is that not extenuating circumstances enough for you?"

"Forget about your hours for now. Your team can do them. That's not what I need to talk to you about. You said that Issy doesn't have any family, right?"

He frowned: "None to speak of."

The Dean pressed on: "Are you sure?"

House gave her an intense look. "Why are you suddenly asking this question?"

"Joyce on the switchboard had a weird call on Sunday night, so weird that she called me at home to tell me about it. It was a little different than the usual reporter's pretense to be Issy's 'father' or 'mother', but I couldn't put my finger on why it was different until just now. This guy identified himself as Issy's _stepfather_. He said he and Issy's mother had driven all the way from Ohio to see her. "

House felt a chill run through his body. "Is Joyce sure about that? The guy specifically said _stepfather _and _Ohio_?"

Cuddy nodded: "Yes, she wrote it all down on the message slip. The caller gave his name as Frank Livingstone and her mother's name as Arlene Walker. And a woman called on Monday morning trying to see Issy that also gave the name Arlene Walker."

She held out the message slips for the two men to examine.

Wilson hissed: "Oh, shit. They must have seen her on the news."

House gripped his cane tighter and nodded. "Yeah, just what she was afraid of. Son of a bitch!"

Cuddy looked worried. "House, what is going on? Who are these people?"

"Bad people. Very bad people. We need to get back up there now. Cuddy, you need to call security STAT. Issy needs extra guards around her to keep these people away. We gotta take precautions."

Cuddy said: "But House, she's still in ICU. No one can get in there without a badge or the nurses letting them in. She should be safe in there."

"Famous last words, Cuddy. Have you already forgotten that Cooper got into the ER by knocking out a janitor and stealing his clothes? It could happen again and I'm not taking any chances. Call Security. Get them up there now. I do not want these people inside the hospital, let alone anywhere near Issy. And we can't tell her about the phone calls. She'll freak."

The trio started towards the elevator, but halfway across the lobby, all three pagers went off. House groaned; he didn't have to look. He knew, he just knew. They were already too late.

Wilson voiced it: "ICU, STAT. Goddamn it, he managed to find a way to get to her. Hold that elevator!"

Just as they rushed into the waiting elevator, they could hear the operator's voice calling out: "Mr. Gray to ICU, STAT. Mr. Gray to ICU, STAT. Mr. Gray to ICU, STAT."


	61. Chapter 61

**A/N: A big thank you to all my wonderful readers for the love! A special hug to hannon7 for hitting the big number! I am truly amazed by all of you sticking with this angsty fic. So without further ado,,, here's the next part.**

**Chapter 61**

Various medical personnel were surrounding Room 7 when they arrived. House let out a warning growl and the sea of people parted and allowed them to enter the room. Even in his most imaginative moments, House could not have dreamed up a scene like that one that was confronting him now. His eyes immediately drifted to the far corner of the room. Barely able to take four steps a half hour ago, Issy was now brandishing her IV pole like a bayonet, keeping Chase and Taub at bay. There was blood on her hospital gown. House groaned inwardly; she must have torn her stitches.

To his credit, Chase was trying to soothe her: "Issy, I know you're upset, but you're bleeding. You've probably torn some of your stitches. Please put the pole down and get back in bed so we can take care of you."

He took a step towards her, but she aimed the IV pole in his direction. "Stay back, Chase. I'm not doing anything until you get _them_ out of here. Once they're gone, then and only then, will I get back into bed."

That was when House noticed the other occupants of the room. In the opposite corner stood a thin rat-faced man with a smirk on his face and a full-figured woman, whose capillary-broken nose signified a long-term drinker. House was pretty sure he had seen those faces before, in the photos that were still buried deep in the bottom of his desk drawer.

It was past time to take control of the situation. He barked out: "What the hell is going on here?"

Issy's head swing around; her panicked expression changed to one of relief when she saw that House was in the room.

She screamed: "Greg, that's Frank! Make him leave. Get him outta here."

Their identities confirmed, House felt a white-hot anger in the pit of his stomach and his hands balled into fists.

He pointed to the rat-faced man and asked: "That's Frank?"

Issy nodded, her face pale and her eyes wide.

House handed his cane to Wilson. "Hold this."

Drawing himself up to his full height, House walked slowly over to the man.

"You're Frank? Issy's stepfather?"

The man nodded and stuck out his hand, obviously expecting a handshake. "Yep, I'm Franklin Livingstone. I helped raise Issy after her daddy took off. She was like a daughter to me."

House's left eye started to twitch. He stared down at Frank's outstretched hand long enough for Frank to get the hint, that House would not be shaking it.

"Like a daughter, huh? Where did you get your parenting information? Perverts Anonymous?"

House threw a right hook that connected nicely with Frank's jaw. The force of the blow slammed Frank back against the wall; a trickle of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Cuddy screamed: "House! What are you doing?"

She tried to grab his arm, but he just shook her off.

Frank touched a knuckle to his lip and chuckled when he saw the blood. "What kinda story did that little bitch tell you about me?"

House landed another blow on Frank's jaw.

Cuddy screamed: "House! Somebody stop him."

Chase started forward in an attempt to subdue House. Wilson stuck out House's cane and blocked his progress. He shook his head at Chase and said in a warning tone: "Don't."

Chase retreated a few steps.

Everyone in the room stood and watched as House thumped Frank a few more times. When Frank finally slumped to the floor and House picked up his foot as if to kick him, Wilson stepped in.

Laying a hand on House's shoulder, he said: "That's enough."

House nodded and stepped back. As Wilson handed him back his cane, House noticed that his knuckles were sore and one of them was bleeding.

The blowsy woman knelt down next to Frank. "Are you OK?"

House snorted: "You're so worried about _him_? What about your daughter?"

His voice increased in volume: "Didn't you see what was going on? Were you so drunk every hour of every day that you didn't see what was happening under your own roof?"

Frank wiggled his jaw around as if assessing if it were broken and smirked: "She knew about it."

House exploded: "You _knew_? You knew and didn't do anything to stop him? Why didn't you kick his ass out of the house and go to the police?"

The woman shook her head and whispered: "I couldn't go to the police. I just couldn't."

Frank said smugly: "Damn straight she couldn't. If she reported me, I'd rat her out and she knew it."

If looks could kill, Issy's mother would have been heading to the morgue in the next five minutes. House was fuming: "What the hell did _you_ do that was so bad that you turned a blind eye to what was going on in your own house? What the hell does he have on you?"

The woman didn't answer; she just leaned against the wall, shaking her head.

House turned to his boss: "Cuddy, call the cops. I want this pervert arrested for child molestation and that one arrested for being an idiot or something."

Wilson piped up: "Contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Pandering. Second-degree sexual battery. Failure to report child abuse."

House nodded: "Yeah, at least one of those."

Frank sneered at the woman. "Well, if I'm going down, I'm taking you with me."

She cried out in alarm. "Frank, no! You promised. I held up my end of the bargain all these years."

"That deal ended when she ran away. I'm not going to jail alone."

House barked: "Out with it already. What the hell did she do?"

Frank smirked and looked around the room, making sure that he had everyone's attention before he spoke. He said the unexpected words with obvious relish. "She killed her husband."

There was a loud gasp and a thump from the corner. Everyone swung around and looked at Issy. She had dropped the IV pole and covered her mouth with both hands. She started sliding down the wall.

House commanded: "Chase, catch her!"

Chase caught her before she hit the floor and carefully lifted her and placed her back in bed. Taub straightened the IV pole and repositioned it next to the bed. Chase tried to get her to lie back, but she pushed his hands away.

Her lip trembled, her voice sounded like a child's as she asked: "You killed Daddy?"

Issy's mother started to go to her, but House held her back with his cane. "It was an accident, baby; I didn't mean to. We were arguing; I gave him a shove and he fell down the stairs. I ran down to him, but he must have broken his neck in the fall. He was dead when I got to him."

In a voice just above a whisper, Issy asked: "How could you have been sure? Maybe he wasn't? Did you call the paramedics?"

The woman shook her head. "If you had seen his body, you would have known too. Nobody's neck can bend at that kinda angle."

Tears pooled in Issy's eyes and spilled over. She whimpered: "No, no."

Her mother went on: "I didn't know what to do, and then Frank showed up to take John to work. He saw John on the floor. He's the one who came up with the idea to dispose of John's body. We put John and all of his clothes into his car and hid it in Frank's garage until nightfall. That way it would seem like he just packed up and took off. Later that night, we drove the car to the reservoir and dumped it. Frank said he'd keep my secret as long as I did what he wanted. At first, I had to sleep with him. Then he insisted on moving in with us. Later on, I realized whom he really wanted and by then, it was too late to go back. I had no choice."

House said harshly: "You had a choice, but it would have put you in prison."

Issy let out a keening sound, the likes of which House hoped to never hear again. "You _killed _my daddy. You killed my daddy and all these years you let me think that he had just left without saying good-bye. You let me think that he didn't love me anymore."

She pleaded: "I couldn't tell you the truth, now could I, baby?"

Issy screamed: "Don't call me that. I'm not your baby. You killed my daddy and you let Frank rape me for _years_ to keep your dirty little secret."

The monitor started beeping; Issy's blood pressure was dangerously high.

Chase shouted: "House! We need to get these people out of here so I can tend to my patient."

House gave a swift nod. "Cuddy, call the cops. I want these two arrested. Chase, Taub, stay. Everyone else, get the hell out of here.

He shot his best friend a pleading look. "Wilson."

Wilson nodded. "I'll take care of it. You take care of Issy."

The two men turned and looked at the bed. Issy was not to be seen. She had burrowed completely under the sheets and not an inch of her could be seen.

A horrible cackle erupted from the corner of the room. Through fits of laughter, Frank spit out: "She used to do that when she was a little girl. Hide under the covers as if no one could find her there. Some things never change. Does she still do that little tongue trick when she gives you a blowjob, Doc? I was the one who taught her that, you know."

House balled his fist and took a swift step towards Frank. This time, Wilson held him back. In a firm tone, he said: "I _will_ take care of this. I'll make sure that the Princeton Police contact the authorities in Ohio. He will be prosecuted."

House shouted: "You're an pervert and an idiot. Bragging in front of witnesses that you molested a child. Better make sure you take some KY Jelly with you to prison."

Frank just laughed again. "My word against hers, Doc. Plus the statute of limitations only lasts six years in Ohio. I can't be prosecuted anymore."

House hissed through clenched teeth: "We'll see about that. Get him out of here! Everyone out! Chase; stay. Taub, grab some Ativan. I have a feeling we are going to need some."

Three security guards were already waiting just outside the room, having been alerted from the Mr. Gray announcement. Issy's mother walked out without a struggle, but Frank put up a struggle. "Hey, I want the doc arrested for assault."

Cuddy frowned and looked at Wilson: "Assault? What assault?"

Wilson shrugged: "I didn't see any assault, did you, Dr Chase?"

Chase shook his head: "Nope, I didn't see anything. Did you, Dr. Taub?"

Taub frowned: "I didn't see a thing."

Frank smirked: "The proof's on my face and on the doc's knuckles."

Wilson said in a mild tone. "Your facial injuries clearly indicate that you walked into a door. Dr House just skinned his knuckles when he tripped and fell. Officers, please escort these people downstairs and guard them until the police get here. Dr Cuddy and I will be right behind you."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

_If I lay really, really still under here, no one will be able to find me and I'll be OK. I'll just pretend that I'm asleep and that this is just a really bad nightmare. It's not true. It can't be true. Daddy can't be dead. He just can't. If I just lay still, he won't find me. Those words won't be true. Don't move. Don't even breathe. It can't be true. It just can't._

Right after Frank started touching her, Issy used to try this trick. She'd hide under the covers and hold her breath, her eyes squeezed tightly shut, hoping against hope that if she couldn't see him, he wouldn't be able to see her. It never worked for very long, he always found her, but somehow she felt a tiny bit of control by delaying the inevitable so she kept doing it.

Issy tuned out all the shouting in the room and tried to find her happy place. For that, she really needed Pookie and her sketchpad, but since she didn't have them at the moment, she tried to conjure up her old happy places, the places that she would go in her mind when Frank was raping her. She tried picturing herself running along a beach, a big Black Lab by her side, but the image would immediately fade away and all she could see was Daddy's broken body lying at the foot of the stairs. The thought of him being put into his car and dumped into the reservoir made her want to scream, but she managed to swallow the sound and keep her lips pressed tightly together.

A voice floated into her consciousness: "Issy, you gotta breathe. Stop holding your breath. Breathe, sweetheart."

_No, no, no, I can't do that. He'll find me if I do. The words will be true if I do. I have to be still. _

The covers were pulled back and a hand gently stroked her hair. "He's gone, sweetheart. The cops have him. You're safe now. He's never going to hurt you again."

The voice sounded kind, but Issy had been fooled before. Without opening her eyes, her hand fumbled for the covers and pulled them back over her head.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

For a man who kept his emotions tightly locked up, it was quite a shock to see the depth of pain in House's eyes. For the second time in less than a week, Chase was taken aback at such an unguarded display of emotion on his former boss's face. Judging from the way that House had lit into Frank, Chase was certain that House had previously been aware of Issy's abuse. Her father's death, on the other hand, was another story. That news had shocked Issy into her current catatonia and House was growing frantic trying to reach her.

His voice was soft and comforting, but Issy's only response was to pull the covers back over her head. She was alternating between holding her breath and taking just small sips of air, sending her O2 stats into the toilet and her BP rocketing skyward. Finally House grabbed the Ativan syringe from Taub and shot the medicine into her IV line. The sedative took effect within minutes and Issy dozed off, her breathing and blood pressure returning to normal. After five minutes, her O2 sats were back to normal and House let out a sigh of relief and sank onto the bed next to her.

In a sympathetic tone, Chase said: "That was quite a shock for her."

House nodded: "No shit. After all these years, to find this out."

His voice faded away before he revealed too much more of Issy's past that wasn't already out in the open. His heart ached for her; how much more pain could one person take? To find out after all these years, that not only was her father dead, but that her mother had caused his death, colluded with Frank to cover it up and allowed him to get away with raping her to save her own ass from jail was enough to send anyone into catatonia to escape the truth of the matter. He couldn't blame Issy for burying herself under the covers and wondered how she would be when she woke up from the Ativan.

Not that it mattered that much anymore, but he had to know. "How did that bastard get in here anyway? Where the hell were you?"

Chase took a deep breath and admitted his guilt. "Cameron came by to see Issy and then I walked her to the elevator. Issy said she didn't mind me being gone for a few minutes. I would never have left if I had thought that there was some danger, I mean, if."

House waved him to silence. "You gave him an opportunity at that moment, but if you hadn't, that bastard would have found another way. Look at Cooper. Perverts like them don't quit. Only Wilson knew about the danger of him showing up. I didn't tell anyone else in order to protect Issy's privacy. She didn't want anyone knowing about her past. Now, it will be all over the hospital."

The room fell silent. Even if the two doctors pledged to keep their knowledge a secret, they knew all too well, how quickly the news would spread around PPTH. There had been several nurses, a couple of techs and three security guards within earshot. There was no way that this news would not be all over the hospital before lunch.

Taub asked: "There's quite a bit of blood on her gown. Should we try to stitch her up while she's still out?"

House shook his head. "No. I don't want her waking up and finding us doing something to her body that she didn't give her express consent for. Let's just assess the injuries and see how bad they are."

The doctors gently examined her wounds. Her abdominal wound had torn open, but Chase believed that it was not bad enough for a return to the O.R. The deepest of the breast cuts had also torn open, but it was also superficial enough that it could be stitched under local anesthesia.

Taub shook his head: "For someone who could barely sit up yesterday, she was really whaling that IV pole around, wasn't she?"

Chase rolled his eyes at the idiotic comment. "Gee, didn't you learn in medical school about _adrenalin surges_? Issy was scared out of her mind, or didn't you notice that?"

The short man shrugged: "I was just saying that it was amazing how she was able to garner the strength to do that when yesterday she could barely sit up."

House interrupted: "Why don't you two go check on Wilson and see if he needs anything? Issy's injuries are not life threatening and you can stitch her up later."

Chase immediately stood up and motioned Taub to the door before the short man could open his mouth again. As they exited the room, Chase merely said: "Page us when you need us."


	62. Chapter 62

**Chapter 62**

"_It has been said, 'time heals all wounds'. _

_I do not agree. The wounds remain. _

_In time, the mind (protecting its sanity) covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. _

_But it is never gone." Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy _

It took another 20 minutes before Issy started to stir. House figured that a little rest was just what she needed after that emotional episode, but he knew that this was only the beginning. Frank had not only violently ripped off the scar tissue that covered Issy's deep emotional wound, but he had enlarged the lesion with this devastating news. Never in House's wildest imagination could he have conjured up a scenario like this one. It was no wonder that Lucas had not been able to find any trace of John Walker; he'd been dead and buried under millions of gallons of water since that fateful day in 1990.

House sat on the side of the bed, her small hand clasped between his own. He wasn't sure how he was going to be able to comfort Issy; there were just no words for this type of situation. The only small particle of comfort was the new knowledge that her Daddy had not voluntarily left her behind in a dash out of Dodge, but instead had been violently taken from her. Nothing would change the fact that he was still gone, and the role her own mother had played in his death, but perhaps knowing that he had not willingly left her would give her some small degree of comfort.

Issy's eyes fluttered and House gave her hand a squeeze. When he saw that her gaze was focused on him, he gave her a small smile. "Hey."

She took a deep breath. "Hey."

She glanced around the room. "Did that really happen or did I have a truly awful nightmare?"

"I'm afraid it really happened."

Tears pooled in her eyes and her bottom lip trembled. "I can't believe it. She killed my Daddy. She killed my Daddy and, and, she _knew_! She _knew _what was going on and didn't do anything to stop it. She let him rape me all those years just so that he would keep her dirty little secret. My Daddy's gone; he's never coming back. All these years, I hoped that maybe, just maybe, and, and he's been at the bottom of a fucking reservoir all this time."

A sob escaped her lips and then another. Issy clapped her hand over her mouth as if to try to contain them. Mindful of her IV lines, broken arm and other injuries, House carefully climbed on the bed next to her and gently gathered her into his arms.

He crooned: "C'mere Issy, c'mere. It's OK to cry. Let me hold you. I got you, sweetheart."

He couldn't think of any words of comfort to say to her; he just held her and murmured over and over again: 'I got you, sweetheart'.

Her tears soaked the front of his shirt, but he just kept murmuring and stroking her back. Eventually the tears subsided and aside from an occasional hiccup, she lay quietly in his arms. Finally she asked: "I hate her. I want her punished. Do you think, after all these years, that they will charge her with his death?"

"Yes, I do. There is no statue of limitations on murder."

"She claims it was an accident."

"She's still responsible for causing his death. If she was out driving drunk and ran over someone, yeah, it would be an accident, but she would still be responsible. It may not be a murder one charge, but manslaughter for sure. And then they covered up the crime. I'm pretty sure that that's against the law too."

"Frank can get charged with that part too."

He nodded: "Yes, he can. And for everything he did to you too."

She looked thoughtful: "Is there a statue of limitations on rape? I thought I heard that somewhere."

That bastard had said there was a six-year statue of limitation. House fervently hoped that he was wrong. "I guess it depends on the state. We'll have to find out what the law is in Ohio."

She sighed: "I don't have any proof though. It would just be my word against his."

"Let's cross that bridge when we come to it, OK? We'll get him charged with everything we can. If he doesn't serve time for raping you, he should serve time for his involvement with your Dad's death. And once he's in prison, the word will spread that he's a child molester and the other prisoners will dispense their own special brand of justice."

"If he's not convicted of that, how will the other prisoners find out?"

House nodded grimly: "They'll find out. Trust me."

_If I have to pay someone to spread the word, I'll do it. I want that bastard to experience at least some of what Issy had to endure at his hands. _

She lay quietly in her arms for a few minutes and then said softly: "I just can't believe he's dead. All these years, I thought that he had gotten fed up with my mother's drinking and just didn't love me enough to drag me along to start a new life without her."

He kissed her forehead. "I know it's hard to deal with the fact that he's dead, but he didn't leave you voluntarily. He was _taken_ from you. He _loved_ you, Issy. He wouldn't have left without you. If he had wanted to start a new life without that drunken bitch, he would have either kicked her out of the house, or hit the road with you in tow. He loved you, baby."

In a tremulous voice, Issy whispered: "He used to call me cupcake."

He could hear the pain in her voice from those few words. House had to squeeze his eyes tightly shut to keep from tearing up. All he could manage to say was: "Did he?"

He felt a slight nod against his chest. "Like you call me 'baby', he called me 'cupcake'. He'd come home from work and call out: _'Daddy's home._ _Where's my little cupcake?'_ And I'd go running and jump into his arms. He'd give me a big hug and a kiss and sometimes he had a little treat for me, like a cookie. Then we'd sit in the recliner and I'd tell him about school and stuff. When daddy came home, it was the best part of my day."

House kissed the top of her head. "Those are nice memories, baby."

Her shoulders shook and a sob escaped. "_She_ took him from me. _She_ killed him. And _she_ let Frank move in and rape me. _His_ pet name for me was _whore_."

Another wet spot appeared on his shirt as Issy buried her face into his chest and cried.

His heart ached for her. He wanted to take away her pain, but there were no words that would give comfort. All he had to offer was his arms to hold her and his broad chest for her to cry upon. He knew that it was insufficient, but it was all he had to give.

When her sobs subsided to sniffles, House put a finger under her chin and gently tilted her face up. Her cheeks were tear-streaked and her eyes were still brimming with unshed tears. He planted gentle kisses across her face, until she sighed and kissed him back.

"Thank you."

"What for, baby?"

"For holding me and taking care of me. _For beating up Frank. _You have no idea."

She paused, her eyes closed in pain. "You have _no idea_ what that means to me, that you did that for me. You are my knight in shining armor and you rescued me from the evil one."

He chuckled: "Me? I'm your knight? An old gimpy guy with a cane?"

Issy replied in a firm tone: "You're _not_ old and gimpy and you _are _my knight. The dream makes more sense now."

"What dream?"

"I had this dream where I was a little girl again back in Akron and I was walking down the street looking for my Daddy. When I finally found him, he was across the street and I couldn't get to him. He started to walk away from me. I wanted to go with him, but he said that I couldn't, that I had to go back. He told me to go back to _him_, that _he_ loved me and would take care of me now. That we would take care of each other."

Her voice faded away as she looked deeply into House's eyes. He didn't really believe in all that afterlife crap, but he could sense how important this was to her. He knew people 'saw' all types of things when they were clinically dead and it was not unreasonable that the misfiring neurons in Issy's brain had conjured up her beloved daddy while she had been in cardiac arrest on the operating table.

In a gentle tone, he said: "He was sending you back to me. I do love you, and I will take care of you to the best of my ability."

Tears pooled in her eyes again. "I love you too. When I get well, I'll take care of you again, just like before."

He shook his head slightly: "Not exactly like before. You're my real girlfriend now, remember?"

She gave him a small smile: "Real girlfriends still bake cookies for their real boyfriends, right?"

A smile spread across his face. "Yes, sweetheart. They most certainly do."

They were lying quietly in each other's arms when they heard a soft tapping on the glass door. After a moment's pause, the door slid open and Chase stepped into the room.

The young doctor was surprised to see that House had managed to squeeze himself onto the bed and was now cradling Issy protectively in his arms. He began in a hesitant voice. "I'm sorry to disturb you."

House tightened his grip on Issy and grumbled: "There's a way to remedy that. Leave."

Chase was more taken aback by House's display of affection than he was by the tone of his voice. He had heard him say a lot worse and in much harsher tones. He had a strong desire to back out of the room and allow them their privacy, but unfortunately he had a message to deliver.

"I would, but I regret to inform you that the cops want to talk to you."

"Didn't you tell them that Frank walked into a door?"

"Yeah, we did, but they want to hear your version of the story too. They also want to talk to Issy."

House's eyes narrowed at that remark. "What about?"

"It's that same detective that was around a few days ago. He still wants to know what happened during the kidnapping and he also wants the details of what happened back in Ohio before he calls anyone there."

House hissed: "Bastard."

Issy mumbled into his chest. "What detective, Greg?"

"The guy that was coordinating the rescue efforts when you were kidnapped. He came by days ago while you were still unconscious. He wanted me to inform him when you woke up because he _needs_ to get your version of the events. I blew him off because Cooper is dead, there will be no trial so what's the point of making you tell him what happened?"

She burrowed closer and whispered in his ear. "My knight was protecting me."

House let out a deep sigh and mumbled: "I just don't see the point of you rehashing it unnecessarily."

"I don't really want to talk about it, but I guess I have to."

"Iss, no, you don't have to."

She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "If I don't tell them what happened, they won't pursue criminal charges back in Ohio. And I want them charged. I want them punishing for killing Daddy."

Softly, House asked: "What about the other charges?"

Issy shrugged: "I guess I have to tell them about that too and hope that the statute of limitations hasn't run out. If it has, I'm screwed again.

Chase cleared his throat. "Issy?"

House growled: "You still here?"

The young doctor rolled his eyes. "Yes, still here. I have to report back to the detective as to what your answer is. What I wanted to tell you, is that Nurse Robin told me that her cousin is a prosecuting attorney back in Ohio. If you wish, she can contact him and find out some answers for you about the statute of limitations."

If anything, the expression on Issy's face grew sadder. "Everybody knows now. Everybody knows what happened to me."

Chase clenched his jaw; he had let down his guard and contributed unwittingly to this event. Now he felt fiercely protective about his patient. "Not everyone knows. Yes, the people who were in the room at the time heard everything. Will it spread around the hospital? Possibly. You know as well as I do how the hospital grapevine works, but you have nothing to be ashamed of. You were the victim here; remember? Just like Maddie and Abby were the victims. It does not reflect badly on you. _They_ are the criminals. What you need to focus on now is continuing to get well so that you can attend your graduation and _their trial_. Let's get them charged and convicted and your mindset will change from victim to victor. It doesn't change the fact that he raped you and that she killed your dad, but at least they will be punished for what they did."

House was astonished by Chase's impassioned speech but hid his reaction. "He's right, baby. Let's get these bastards."

Issy glanced back and forth between House and Chase. Both men looked extremely determined. Maybe, just maybe, it was possible that justice could be served. She didn't want to get her hopes up too much, but at least she wouldn't have to do it alone. Finally she whispered: "OK. I'll do it. Ask Nurse Robin if she wouldn't mind calling her cousin. Tell her that the events in question took place, hmm, between 1992 and 1998."

Chase nodded.

House said: "Get Taub. I wanted Issy to get stitched up before any questioning takes place. While the two of you are here, I'll go talk to the detective and then when you're ready, Iss, I'll bring him back here."

He squeezed her tightly. "I'll be with you the whole time. You won't be alone."

Tears filled her eyes again. "Thank you. I couldn't do this without you."

House held her as tightly as he dared. Somewhat embarrassed that Chase was still in the room, witness to his uncharacteristic display of affection, he growled at the man. "Still here? Go get Taub and tell the damn cop I'll be down in a few."

Chase smirked and said: "On my way."

He went to the door and slid it open. Then he turned back and said: "We are here for you, Issy, to help you get better and to support you while you deal with all of this. Anything you need, anything at all, you just ask."

Even though the perpetrators were under guard, and Chase and Taub would be with her, House didn't want to leave Issy. Strangely he felt like he was abandoning her, leaving for even a few minutes. And this questioning could take a lot longer than that. He went into the bathroom to wash the dried blood off of his hand, destroying a visible sign that his fists had recently met something hard. Fortunately, there were no bruises that he would have to explain away.

He jabbed his finger at the two doctors. "You are not to leave this room until I get back. Is that understood?"

Taub rolled his eyes and muttered: "Yes, Boss." Chase took him more seriously: "No worries. We're not going anywhere until you get back."

"Not even to walk Cameron to the elevator."

Now it was Chase's turn to roll his eyes. Leave it to House to bring that up. "Not even for that, House. I will not leave the room until you get back."

Somewhat mollified but still reluctant to leave, House gave Issy's hand a small squeeze and said: "I'll be back as soon as I can."

She nodded. "I know."

As House headed towards the door, he tossed another remark over his shoulder: "Do a good job, I'll be grading you."

Chase smirked: "You're not my boss any more."

"I'll still grade ya. Where are they? Cuddy's office?"

Chase nodded. With one final longing look at Issy, House limped off to tell his side of the story to the cops.

**A/N: I heard that quote on an episode of Criminal Minds and thought it was the most amazing quote that I'd ever heard. And certainly if anyone knew about pain and loss, and having their sorrow exposed to the public eye, it was Rose Kennedy. And the quote seemed to fit well with House and Issy's story. This post is also a little early, as this seems like it will be a busy week for me. It may possibly be the weekend before I get back for more. As always,, thank you so much for reading. glennie**


	63. Chapter 63

**A/N: Sorry for the delay. Hope the longish chapter makes up for it. **

**I am not a lawyer. The legalese below is taken from my on-line research and interpreted to the best of my ability. Any errors are my own.**

Chapter 63

As he limped away from Cuddy's office, House was internally fuming. The questioning had taken much longer than he wanted. He gave his version of 'Frank walking into a door' three times and it still didn't seem to satisfy the fucking detective. Thankfully he had multiple witnesses backing up his story and only Frank's word against him. Strangely Issy's mother claimed that she remembered nothing about how Frank's injures occurred and no matter how much Frank browbeat her, she remained steadfast in claiming ignorance of the event. The detective finally gave up on trying to change House's story and moved on to the other issues. Detectives in Akron had been notified and were sending divers to search the reservoir. If the car were found, detectives would be sent to Princeton to extradite the two suspects. In the meantime, the Princeton PD would hold onto them. Issy's mother gave a detailed description of where they had dumped the car and assuming it had not drifted off, it seemed like it would be found rather easily. As to any child molestation charges, Issy would need to be questioned about that and the statute of limitations researched to see if it were still possible to charge Frank with those crimes. House hoped that it would be possible. As much as he hated the word, he wanted Issy to have some sense of _closure_ about the horrible events from her childhood. Being able to testify against Frank and send him to jail would give her a sense of empowerment that she never had as a child and go a long way towards finding said closure. He knew it would take some time and perhaps some therapy, but hopefully in the not-so-distant future, they could get their lives back on track and settle down into a _real _relationship together.

Thinking about their future together suddenly reminded House that he had never given Issy her birthday present. He mashed the button for the 4th floor and then hurried to his office when the elevator doors opened. The jewelry box was still in his desk drawer exactly where he left it. He opened it up and took another look at the heart pendant. _My heart is in your hands._ Smiling as he shoved the box into his jacket pocket, he hoped that it would not be too long before they had a private moment together so that he could give the belated birthday present to her.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

When he slid open the door, he could immediately sense some tension in the room. His view of Issy was blocked by Nurse Robin's back. Taub was on the far side of the bed; Chase was standing at the foot of her bed and after a quick glance at House, he turned back to Issy and said in a calming tone. "House is back."

He quickly stepped into her eyesight; the relief on her face at seeing him was palpable. There was a cell phone pressed to her hand and she seemed to be listening and making 'uh, huh' noises.

House muttered to Chase: "What the hell is going on?"

The young doctor replied: "We closed her wounds. Taub's not happy with the one on her breast. He actually wanted to take her back to the OR and do a proper job on it, but Issy wouldn't hear about it. Told him to just close it up and it would be fine for now. Then Nurse Robin came in. That's her lawyer cousin on the phone with Issy."

Issy's eyes beseeched him and he moved to her side and sat down on the edge of the bed. Then she said into the phone: "Mr. Howard, I'm having trouble grasping all of this right now. Could you please speak to my boyfriend and explain all of this to him? He's right here; his name is Dr. Gregory House."

She extended the phone to him. "Greg, my head is spinning with everything he is telling me. Could you please talk to him? His name is Adam Howard."

House took the phone and said: "This is House. I'm Issy's boyfriend."

A smooth voice with a slight Midwestern twang replied: "Dr. House, Adam Howard, here. I'm a prosecuting attorney here in Akron. My cousin gave me the pertinent dates of the abuse and I researched the statutes before calling her back. According to Issy, the abuse took place between 1992 and 1998, with forcible rape occurring between 1994 and 1998. In the state of Ohio, prior to March 9, 1999, there was only a six-year statue of limitations for crimes involving any type of sexual misconduct. That would have meant that Issy had only until 2005 to report the crime and be able to see that it was prosecuted. But on March 9, 1999 that statute of limitations was extended to twenty years and for any crime that the statute of limitations had not run out by that date, it now had the automatic extension of twenty more years. Since the time had not run out for Issy by March 9, 1999, she automatically got twenty years more time to file charges."

No wonder Issy said her head was spinning with the way this guy was spewing out the legal jargon.

He growled: "Bottom line?"

The attorney chuckled: "Bottom line is that Issy can press charges for rape, sexual battery, unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, gross sexual imposition and whatever other charges that I can come up with. We can throw the book at this guy. And after the criminal trial, she can file a civil suit. She has twelve years after reaching the age of majority to bring the suit, which in her case is up to age 30. I can't handle that type of case, but I can certainly recommend a couple of good civil attorneys for her when she is ready to do that."

House frowned: "What good would a civil suit do?"

"She could get monetary damages. If he has a house or other property, that could be sold to pay her settlement. We could also go after any savings or pension that he has. If he is convicted in the criminal trial, getting a conviction in the civil court will be a piece of cake."

_Pension._ He had worked at Goodyear for who knows how many years and House bet that he had a decent pension awaiting him upon retirement. That could be a nice little windfall for Issy.

"What does Issy need to do?"

"I'm going to need to get a deposition from her, detailing the events as much as possible. Exact dates of the abuse would be especially helpful. Any type of physical evidence that she might have would be great. Anyone else who participated in the abuse can also be charged and subpoenaed to testify again her stepfather."

House made a mental note to ask Issy privately if she remembered the names of the two men who had raped her the night that she ran away. They could also be charged and forced to testify against Frank, bolstering the evidence of the case.

"Did Issy tell you about what happened to her real father?"

House swiftly explained the circumstances of John Walker's death and the expectation that the car would be found in the reservoir.

Mr. Howard replied: "Good, that will get them quickly expedited back to Ohio. Perhaps we will be able to get the mother to testify that she allowed Frank to molest her daughter in exchange for his silence concerning her husband's death. We can also charge her with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, pandering and failure to report child abuse. It will not be easy to prosecute a case this old without physical evidence, but I believe that it can be done."

House's phone buzzed with a text message. It was from Wilson. _"Cop wants 2 talk 2 Issy now. Ready?"_

Damn it. There was just too much going on. Speaking into the phone, House said: "I'll speak to Issy about all of this. I'm sure she will want to move forward on charging him, but right now we've got the local cops needing to question her, so let us get back to you. What's your number?"

House programmed Howard's number into his cell phone as he continued to speak on Robin's phone. He promised to be in touch soon, disconnected and handed the phone back to Robin. He gave her a nod and said: "Thanks."

Robin, a tall redhead with bangs and a bouncy ponytail, nodded back. "No problem. I want to get the bastard too."

House turned back to Issy: "The cops want to talk to you now. Are you ready?"

Plaintively she said: "I want to know what the attorney said first."

"How about I text Wilson and tell them to come up in 15 minutes? That will give me time to tell you about it."

She nodded and he sent the text to Wilson.

Chase asked: "You want us to?"

Then he pointed towards the door, his meaning evident.

House nodded: "I'll page you if I need you."

When they were finally alone, House summarized what the attorney had told him.

Eyes wide in amazement, Issy said: "Wow. I can really still press charges? That is unbelievable. But with no physical evidence, how can we get him convicted?"

"Let the attorney worry about that. We'll give him as much information as we can. Who knows? Your mother may end up testifying against him. And do you remember the names of those two goons who paid Frank to rape you the night you ran away?"

Issy spat out: "I certainly do. Roland Stanley and Al Bessler. They work at Goodyear too."

"I bet they would be happy to testify against Frank when they are facing their own charges of raping a minor. In exchange for testifying, they'd probably get a plea bargain for a lesser offense, but the main thing is to take down Frank, right?"

Issy no longer look frightened; she now looked focused and determined. "Yes, I want Frank punished for all those years he raped me and I want my mother punished for killing Daddy. Anything else is gravy."

"Then that's what we'll focus on. Unfortunately it means you are going to have to tell more people about the abuse and you'll probably have to tell the story over and over again."

She nodded. "I know. I don't like that part, but it has to be done. You'll be with me, right?"

"Every step of the way, baby."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson and two detectives arrived exactly 15 minutes after House's text. The tall one was the same guy who had been coordinating Issy's rescue and wanting to talk to her afterwards. He introduced himself to Issy as Walter Ludovic and handed her his card. His partner, a short but solidly packed man, gave his name as Peter Miller. He took out a tape recorder and asked Issy if it was OK if they recorded the interview. Once Issy gave her consent, Detective Miller started the recorder and sat down with a notebook. He nodded at Ludovic who started the interview.

"For the record, today is Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008. Present in the room are Dr. Gregory House, Dr. James Wilson, Isabelle Walker, Detective Peter Miller and myself, Detective Walter Ludovic. Isabelle, do I have your permission to tape this interview?"

In a soft voice, Issy replied: "Yes, you may record it."

"Thank you. I need you to tell us in your own words that events that happened last Thursday, May 29th, 2008."

Issy took a deep breath and began. She told them about discovering the girls loitering around outside the ER, suspecting something seriously wrong and bringing them in to see Dr. Cameron. For the first time, House heard all the details of what had happened in the exam room, including the phone call to Elizabeth Cooper, and ending with Issy being dragged out of the ER with a knife to her throat.

She paused at that point. House thought she looked a bit pale and was actually surprised when Detective Ludovic asked if she felt all right to continue.

Issy nodded. "I need something to drink, like a ginger ale. My stomach feels a little queasy."

Wilson volunteered to go get it. They paused the tape until he returned with the beverage and gave Issy a few minutes to sip on it. Finally she nodded that she was ready to continue and Detective Miller hit the record button again.

The next part was harder for both Issy and House to get through. As Issy described her ordeal in the car and trying to figure out a way to escape, House was developing his own heartburn as he listened to his girlfriend describe her terror and the growing realization that there was no way out.

"My hands were shaking and I didn't want him to see that, so I put them in my pocket. That's when I realized that I had my phone. Dr. Cameron had given it back to me after we finished talking to Elizabeth Cooper and I had just stuck it in my pocket. I ran my thumb over the keys for a minute and then realized that I could make a call blindly, so I called Greg. I was hoping that he would be able to pick up on my hints and get the police to find me."

Detective Ludovic then told Issy something that she had not previously known. "At the time that you called, Dr. House, Dr. Wilson and I were in Dr. Cuddy's office with her. Dr. House put the phone on speaker so that we could all hear you. As you gave your locations, I was feeding the information to the other law enforcement officers who were on your trail. As such, we were able to get to you fairly quickly."

Issy's eyes widened: "Oh! So you all heard, everything?"

She glanced at House, the meaning clear in her expression. He nodded. Everyone in the room had heard her declare her love for him. Issy blushed and looked down at her lap.

The detective went on: "You did a great job. I'm sure Cooper had no idea of what you were doing. You really aided in your own rescue. Now can you tell us what happened once you arrived at the abandoned motel?"

There was one small beep on the monitor and the two doctors glanced up at it. Issy's BP was borderline high; as much as she was trying to stay composed, her body was betraying her and revealing just how much stress this interview was putting her under.

House asked: "Issy, do you feel up to continuing?"

She nodded. "I want to get this over with."

The detective said: "You're doing great. Now, you've arrived at the abandoned motel."

Issy went on to describe her last words to House and then how, just seconds after she ended the call, the passenger side door was yanked open and Cooper dragged her into one of the rooms.

"He sliced my clothes off with that big knife and then he pushed me down on the floor and got in between my legs. He, he, wanted to r-rape me, but he c-couldn't g-get an erection. That just m-made him angrier. There was a b-broomstick and he s-started b-beating me with it. I curled up into a b-ball and tried to protect my head. It hurt so b-badly."

Issy was close to tears; her BP shot up and the monitor was beeping in alarm.

House said: "Issy, if this is too much, you can stop the interview at any time."

"No, I'll f-finish. I c-can't remember much else. He was b-beating me and then I remember him p-pushing my legs apart and there was a horrible p-pain. I think I might have s-screamed but I'm sure that I p-passed out at that p-point because the next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital."

House's anger was growing; he hated that Issy was being required to give a statement about this part of her kidnapping. He felt it was so useless as the bastard was dead and there would never be a trial. Bad enough that she was going to have to repeat everything that Frank had done to her over the years in order to get him convicted.

He growled at the detectives: "It's obvious, isn't it? He pushed her legs apart and started raping her with the broomstick. The pain was so intense that she lost consciousness."

The tall detective nodded. "We realize that, Dr. House. We're sorry to cause your girlfriend any pain, but we needed to hear her version of the events. The suspect was killed by our men and we must document that it had been necessary to use deadly force."

At this point, he looked straight at House. "What you do not know, is that when the SWAT team burst into the motel room, Cooper was carving up your girlfriend with that big knife of his. There was blood everywhere. They weren't sure at that point if she was still alive or not, but they weren't going to take any chances. When he raised the knife and it looked like he was going to plunge it into her chest, my men used deadly force to prevent her from being killed."

Issy was weeping silently at this point. House moved closer to her on the bed and brushed her hair back from her face. "She's had enough. Are you finished with this particular subject?"

The detective shook his head. "I have no specific questions. Isabelle, is there anything else you can remember?"

She shook her head. "I've told you everything I remember about that day."

"Alright, I'd like to move on and ask you some questions about the disappearance of your father and the accusations that you have made about your stepfather."

Issy cried out: "They are not accusations; it's the truth!"

"That's not for me to decide. I'm just here to gather evidence and take statements. Are you up for doing that now?"

Issy seemed worn out already but she nodded her head and let the detective start questioning her. What happened on the day her father disappeared? When did Frank move in with them? When did he start molesting her? How often did it happen? Her answers grew more and more wooden the longer the interview went on. Finally the questions came to an end.

"Thank you for your time, Isabelle. I know this was very stressful on you, but it's necessary in order for us to have enough information to press charges against Frank Livingstone and Arlene Walker. I will pass along the names of those other two men so that the police in Akron can start an investigation on them. If you think of anything else, do not hesitate to call me."

Just then his phone beeped with a text message. He read it quickly and then repeated it to the assembled group. "They found a car in the reservoir right where we were told it would be. The license plate has been removed but they're tracing the VIN. It's a 1986 Plymouth Reliant Sedan. There's a Chicago Bears bumper sticker on the rear. Does that sound familiar to you, Isabelle?"

"_Wanna go for ice cream, cupcake? Come on, I'll race you to the car!"_

Issy nodded. Her eyes filled with tears as the memories came flooding back. "Daddy loved that car. It was the first car he ever bought new. He was so proud of it. Mr. Hippler down the street may have had a drop-top Caddy in mint condition, but Daddy loved that K-car just as much. And Daddy loved the Bears. The last Christmas we spent together; I gave him a Bears key chain for his present. H-he was so h-happy with it."

The memories of their last Christmas together was just too much for Issy and she burst into tears.

House growled: "That's enough. You're finished. Now get out of here!"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

As soon as Wilson hustled the detectives out of the room, House crawled into the bed with Issy and gathered her into his arms. She cried so long and so hard that House was considering ringing the nurse for some Ativan. Finally, her sobbing subsided and she mumbled: "I feel so sad. I can't stop crying. I feel like there's a big hole in my chest and I don't know what to do."

He held her tightly and stroked her back. "It's OK, baby. It's OK to be sad. You just lost your daddy. Cry all you want."

His sweet sympathy brought on a fresh round of tears and she soaked the front of his shirt again. He just held onto her, knowing that this was only the first of many rounds of tears that she would shed between now and the resolution of all of this.

Issy finally finished crying and lay quietly in House's arms. She felt so safe and warm there that she never wanted to move. But her bladder was nagging her and she needed to get up. He helped her to the bathroom and then back to bed where she collapsed with exhaustion. He sat down next to her and picked up her hand. There seemed to be nothing to say that could possibly wipe the sad look off of her face. His stomach growled and a glance at the watch told him that it was nearly 3PM.

"It's way past lunchtime. You must be hungry."

She gave him a small smile. "I can tell you are, but I'm not really that hungry right now."

His thumb stroked the back of her hand. "I never got your French Fries."

"That's OK. It was just a ruse to get you out of the room anyway."

"I know."

This time the smile made it all the way to her eyes. She chuckled: "Of course you do. But do you know why?"

"No and that's driving me crazy. Are you going to tell me or do I have to twist Chase's arm to get him to squeal?"

"No, I'll tell you. I just didn't want to ask in front of you in case the answer was bad. I wasn't sure how I'd take that."

"Whatever it is, we'll deal with it together, baby. You're not alone, anymore."

She looked into his eyes and nodded slowly. "I guess it will take a little while for that to really sink in, you know?"

He squeezed her hand in understanding.

She shifted in the bed to try to get more comfortable. It had been a long time since she had any pain medication and between the physical exertion and the emotional stress, she was hurting. "Because of the injuries inflicted on me, I was concerned about something else that no one had mentioned."

"What were you concerned about?"

"I wasn't sure if there had been any vaginal injuries that would possibly prevent me from having sex again."

She swallowed hard. "So I wanted to ask Chase about that without you in the room, cuz if he told me that I couldn't, I wasn't sure how I was going to react and I was afraid."

House looked at her intently. "Were you afraid that I'd reject you if it were true?"

Issy couldn't meet his eyes. "I, I didn't know. I wasn't sure how deep your feelings were for me. So."

He picked up her hand and kissed it lovingly. Then he placed in against his cheek, pressing against it. "Whatever the answer is, sweetheart, we'll deal with it together. I want you with me, no matter what. If you can never have intercourse again, we know other ways to make love to each other. It will be OK."

Her finger reached up and stroked his cheek as she whispered: "You are so sweet."

He rolled his eyes. "I am _not _sweet. So spill it. What the hell did Chase tell you?"

"He said that there was some swelling from the trauma but no tears or other injuries. He says I'll need a pelvic exam in six weeks and then if everything looks OK, I'll get the green light for sex and we can try, but he doesn't think it will be a problem."

He kissed her hand again. "Good. Nothing to worry about."

She looked at him with such amazement that he finally had to ask. "What that's look for?"

"I just can't believe it. It wouldn't matter to you if I couldn't screw you again."

He gave her a wry smile. "I'd _miss_ it, no doubt about it, but there are other ways to scratch the itch. Right now I'm just looking forward to getting you home so that we can sleep in the same bed again. I miss falling asleep all wrapped up in you."

"I miss that too."

He kissed her hand again. "Stop tearing out your stitches and maybe we'll get home by the weekend. And to do that, you need to build up your strength. You need to eat, take a Percocet and get some rest. What shall I order for you?"

"How about a chicken salad sandwich and some fries?"

"Excellent choice."

He called Chase: "Not too busy for a cafeteria run for your favorite patient, are you?"


	64. Chapter 64

**Chapter 64**

After the very late lunch and a dose of Percocet, Issy took a much-needed nap. House could have used one too, but he had phone calls to make that he didn't want Issy to overhear.

Stepping just outside the door, where he could keep an eye on her and yet not have her overhear the conversations in case she woke up, he placed a call to the attorney in Akron. House apprised him about the new information about the car found in the reservoir, but Howard already knew about it.

"Akron's finest have me in the loop. We are moving at full speed ahead on this one, Dr. House. Two detectives are being dispatched to Princeton to pick up Livingstone and Walker as we speak. I am going to need a deposition from Isabelle sooner rather than later. When do you think she will feel up to traveling to Akron?"

"Not for a while. She was badly injured."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Well, I wouldn't mind a little trip out of Akron; haven't seen my cousin in a while. We can take care of the deposition while she is still in the hospital and keep the momentum going on this."

House grimaced: "How soon do you want to do this? This has been a rough day for Issy."

In a sympathetic tone, Howard replied: "I'm sure it has, especially coming so soon after the kidnapping and injuries from last week. I don't want to overload her, but the sooner we can get the deposition, the sooner we can get them charged on all counts and the better chance we have of holding them without bail for trial. I'd like to do this in the next day or two, if you think that's feasible."

House thought for a minute and then said: "OK. Get here whenever you can. If I know Issy, she will probably want to get this over with as soon as possible. She really wants the two of them punished for this."

"Getting them charged for moving the body is a no-brainer. They will both be charged with tamping with physical evidence, unauthorized removal of a dead body, and I can probably get Livingstone on first-degree rending criminal assistance for moving said body. If the autopsy shows her dad has a broken neck, we can probably get her mother for manslaughter. She's gonna claim it was an accident and I doubt there's enough evidence to try her for first-degree murder. But considering the other charges against her, she will serve some jail time."

"Issy wants them both to serve time. What about the rape charges?"

"That's what I need the deposition for. If we can get her mother to testify against Livingstone and back up Issy's story, we stand a good chance of putting him away for a long time."

"Would two more witnesses, or should I say participants, help the process?"

House proceeded to tell Howard about Issy's last night in Akron and the names of the two men who had paid Frank to rape her.

"We'll get them charged as soon as we get Issy's deposition, but getting them convicted will honestly be next to impossible unless we can get them to turn on each other. But with the appropriate pressure, perhaps the police will convince them to turn state's evidence and testify against Livingstone to save their own butts."

"Actually that's what Issy is hoping for. She really wants her mother and Frank punished the most."

"Great. We're all on the same page. Look, I gotta go now. Detectives are here and we are plotting strategy. I'll get back to you. Is this the best number to call?"

"Yeah, call me and I'll relay any information onto Issy. I'd rather hear the bad news first so that I can break it to her gently. She's a little fragile right now."

"Yeah, I can understand that. I'll call you when I know anything and I'll be seeing you in the next day or so."

They exchanged good-byes and House blew out a big sigh as he closed the phone. One call down; one more to go. He consulted the card and dialed the number.

"Ludovic."

"House here. Next time you have some crappy news to dump on my girlfriend, how about telling me about it first so that I could break it to her a little more gently than your shoot-straight-from-the-hip tactics?"

The detective chuckled: "Very protective of your lady, aren't you? Can't blame you, she seems like a sweet young thing."

House growled a warning.

"Take it easy. I get the picture without you coloring in all the details. This has got to be completely unreal for her to find out, after all these years, that her mother killed her father. And with her surviving a recent kidnapping and dealing with those injuries, well, she has a lot on her plate. So what do you want from me?"

"Just a heads-up if you need to give her some bad news, so that I can be prepared and figure out how to break it to her gently."

"I'll do what I can. The car has been pulled out of the water, and surprise, surprise, there was a Chicago Bears key chain dangling from the ignition and a body strapped in the driver's seat. After eighteen years in the water, can you imagine what kind of condition it is in?"

"Yeah, see, that's the kind of news that I don't want you giving Issy. I don't want her to have _that_ mental image."

House paused, took a deep breath and asked: "It's completely skeletonized, isn't it?"

The detective replied: "Yeah. Akron PD is going to pull dental records to confirm his identity and with luck, the coroner will find evidence of a broken neck, so that they can charge her mother with manslaughter. When his identity is confirmed, or if I get any other news, I'll give you a call and then you can break it to Isabelle. Fair enough?"

"That will do. Thanks."

Not quite believing that he just thanked a cop, House closed his phone. He just hoped that his message got across loud and clear. If anyone was handing Issy some bad news, he were prefer advance knowledge of it so that he could be prepared for the fallout and have some Ativan handy if need be.

+++ HOUSE MD +++

Around 8PM, the door to the room slid open and House glanced up from the journal that he had been attempting to read but failing miserably. The intruder was a welcome one, Wilson, juggling a large brown bag in one hand with aromatic smells wafting from it.

Wilson took a glance at Issy and then mouthed the word: "Dinner?"

House nodded and waved him in.

Wilson set the bag on the table and starting removing the containers of food. House opened them until he found the sizzling shrimp and then settled back with a pair of chopsticks to eat right out of the container. Wilson settled in with his own container of chicken lo mein. After a few minutes of eating in silence, Wilson whispered: "How's she doing?"

House grimaced: "How do you think she's doing? Her dad was."

He waved his hand, suddenly at a loss for words, and let out a small sigh.

Wilson nodded: "I get it."

Appetite suddenly gone, House set the small white box back on the table. "She cried so long and so hard that I thought I was going to have to sedate her again. Bad enough that he's gone, as in _not_ _coming back_ _ever_ gone, but to find out _their _involvement in it."

"Her own mother. Jesus, the betrayal."

"Yeah, exactly. The attorney from Akron is coming tomorrow to take her deposition."

"So soon?"

"Yeah, they want the whole story ASAP so that they have enough to charge them with and hopefully keep them in jail without bail."

"Does Issy know yet?"

Before House could formulate a reply, a sleepy voice piped up: "Does Issy know what yet?"

The two men had been so involved in their conversation that they hadn't noticed that Issy had awakened.

In a gentle tone, House asked: "Hey, baby, did you sleep OK? Wilson brought up some Chinese food. Are you hungry?"

"Thirsty. Can I have some ginger ale?"

Wilson replied: "I'll go get you some."

He dashed out of the room. Issy reached out her hand and as House grasped it in his own, Issy asked again: "What don't I know yet?"

House squeezed her hand. "I got a couple of things to tell you, but why don't you eat something first?"

"No, I'd rather hear what you have to say first. Plus I'm just really thirsty right now."

"The Percocet is probably giving you some cotton mouth. Wilson will be right back with your drink."

"I know, Greg. Go on and tell me; I can take it."

House sighed but before he could start in, Wilson rushed back into the room with Issy's beverage. He was able to delay the conversation for a few more minutes, while Wilson poured her a plastic cup of ginger ale and handed it to her. Issy took a big gulp and then said: "Come on, tell me."

"That lawyer in Ohio is coming here tomorrow. He needs your deposition as soon as possible to maximize the charges against them."

Issy closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. "I have to tell him everything, don't I?"

House replied firmly, but gently: "If you want Frank to go to jail, you are going to have to give that lawyer as much ammunition as you've got."

She nodded: "I know, it's just, well, that's just the start. No telling how many times I'll have to repeat the whole saga before the case goes to trial. And then I'll have to get up on the witness stand and say it all again, in front of Frank and the judge and."

Issy pressed her face into the pillow.

House hastened to reassure her: "I'll be with you, baby. Remember what I said, I'll be with you every step of the way."

"I know that and I do appreciate that, it's just, well, I hate for you to have to hear _everything_ that I had to do."

"You mean everything that you were _forced _to do. I already have a pretty good idea, baby. I doubt you are going to tell me something that I don't already suspect."

"No, probably not. It's just going to be hard to put it all into words."

Wilson moved his chair closer to the left side of the bed and put on his best comforting persona. "Issy, we know that this will be hard for you, but House and I and the team, we're all here for you. We will support you as you go through this ordeal. You know, you are getting to do something that many child victims never get to do, press charges against their abuser."

Issy thought for a moment and then replied: "Yeah, that's true. All these years I just concentrated so hard on getting away and staying away from him, that it never occurred to me that I could get him punished for what he did."

House squeezed her hand in an encouraging manner: "Chances are very good that your testimony will send him to prison for a long time. His life, as he knows it, is over."

In a small voice, Issy replied: "I hope so. I want him in jail for the rest of his perverted life."

Wilson continued: "It will be tough to get through all of this, but you'll be very happy when it's over and he is behind bars."

"It's hard to see that far ahead right now. I don't even know if there is enough ammunition to do the job."

"One step at a time, baby. Let's see what the lawyer tells us tomorrow."

Issy nodded and then asked: "Are you OK with all of this?"

Genuinely baffled by her question, House asked: "OK with what? With you testifying? I'll do anything I can to help you put the bastard behind bars."

"No, that's not what I mean."

Issy squeezed her eyes tightly shut in an attempt to keep the tears from coming. "Are you OK with everyone knowing that your g-girlfriend is a, hmm, a?"

Again Issy pressed her face into the pillow.

House moved to sit on the bed and cupped her cheek with his hand. "You can't possibly be asking if I'm OK with people knowing that my girlfriend is a rape survivor? Do you think people are going to look at me funny because of it? You think people are going to treat me differently because of it?"

Wilson interjected: "If anything, they'll probably treat you better than they did before. They'll respect your actions, House. You clocked that pervert pretty good."

House ignored his friend's comment and focused on Issy. "You think I give a flying fuck what everyone thinks of me? I don't give a shit about that. They just better treat my girlfriend with respect or they will be feeling the wrath of House. Look at me, baby."

Jaw trembling with barely restrained emotion, Issy opened her eyes and looked into House's deep blue eyes. In a gentle voice, he said: "No one is going to look down on you for being a rape survivor and no one is going to give either of us any crap about this. There's nothing for you to be concerned about. Think of Abby; picture her in your mind. That was you; you were just that size sixteen years ago when he started molesting you. Can you picture anyone giving that child a hard time about what happened? She's just a child and so were you. Never forget that. What did I tell you before?"

Issy whispered, but it was loud enough for Wilson to hear. "He was the adult, I was the child; it was his fault."

House murmured: "That's right, baby. Don't forget."

He wrapped his arms around her and gently pulled her into his embrace. Issy nestled into his shoulder and House leaned down to plant small kisses across her face.

The scene was so intimate that Wilson immediately felt like an intruder. He quietly made his way to the door to give them some well-deserved privacy.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After a few minutes of cuddling, House murmured: "I'm so proud of you."

Her tone was one of complete bafflement. "You are? Why?"

"Because you don't have to do this. You don't have to press charges and testify and open up the details of your life this way. You could simply run from it all, but you're not. You are bravely putting yourself out there so that this pervert can be punished, just like you put yourself out there to help protect Abby and Maddie. You're an amazing woman and I am so proud of you. I am damn lucky to have you in my life."

Issy let out a small sob. "Oh, Greg. I love you so much."

House smiled and held her tighter still. "Baby, do you remember the day when I told you that my heart was in your hands?"

"I'll never forget it. I was hoping so hard that it was true."

He kissed her forehead. "It was true. I loved you back then but I was too much of a coward to tell you. I wanted to give up our business arrangement months ago, but I was afraid of how you would take it. I wasn't sure if you would let me support you while you finished school, so I thought I would wait and tell you when you graduated. Then last Monday; I realized that I couldn't wait any longer to tell you. I decided to tell you on your birthday and I bought you a really cool birthday present to commemorate the occasion. Then things got crazy and I didn't get to give it to you."

Eyes wide with wonder, Issy asked: "You got me a birthday present?"

He smirked: "Of course I did. I'd be a pretty crappy boyfriend if I forgot my girl's special day."

He pulled the box out of his pocket and said: "I'm sorry that it's not wrapped. Things got a little crazy, and well, I didn't want to wait any longer to give this to you."

He handed her the small box with the distinctive blue color.

Issy gasped: "Tiffany's? Oh, my god, Greg, that's so."

"Shhhhh, just open it, baby."

With trembling fingers, Issy opened the lid and gasped when she saw the platinum heart pendant decorated with small diamonds. In a tiny voice, she asked: "This is for me?"

House smiled: "I'm giving my heart to the woman I love. OK, that sounded sappy out loud. It didn't sound nearly so bad in my brain."

Issy gave him a dazzling smile: "It didn't sound sappy at all. I accept your wonderful gift and I promise to take good care of it."

He chuckled, remembering her words from that night so many weeks ago. "You don't have to promise, baby. I know you will."

She caressed his cheek: "I love you, Greg, with all my heart."

He looked into her eyes and replied in his most sincere tone. "I love you too, my Issy-belle. I don't know why you love this cranky old cripple but I'm damned glad you do."

Before she could refute his not-so-complementary self-description, his lips crashed onto her and his tongue begged permission to enter. Her lips parted and allowed his tongue to tango with hers. At that moment, everything else was forgotten except the warmth and love that they shared with each other.

+ + + HOUSE MD + + +

Around the same time, a man was unlocking the door to his home and letting himself in. It had been an interesting day. Mancini had not only given him permission to contact the reporter but had actually seemed quite delighted with the idea of giving that conniving whore a little more punishment. Initially, Angelo had not been able to get through to his contact. The guy's cell phone went right to voice mail and his office said that he was out of town on a story. While they asserted that the reporter would be back in the next day or two, Angelo was an inpatient man and didn't want the story to wait. He left a more urgent message on the guy's cell phone and implied that if he didn't get back to him ASAP that Angelo would give the story to his someone else. Sure enough, the reporter called back within an hour, begging for the story. Angelo held out, saying that he could only deliver the goods in person and certainly not over a cell phone. As the reporter was really out of town, he implored for Angelo not to give the story to another reporter and that he could meet with him tomorrow night as soon as he got back into town. Angelo pretended to think it over, letting the reporter sweat a little and then, with seeming reluctance, agreed to wait until tomorrow night. One more day really wouldn't matter. Once this story broke, the little bitch would not be able to hold up her head in this town. One more day of enjoying her newfound fame would make the fall that much harder. Angelo decided that waiting one more day wasn't so bad after all.


	65. Chapter 65

**Chapter 65**

_Wednesday June 4__th__, 2008 _

"It's been almost a week. I _really_ need a shower."

House rolled his eyes and smirked: "Don't I know it. But I don't think you're strong enough to handle one yet."

"Robin's gone to get a shower chair and she's going to assist me."

House teased: "You want a _girl _helping you with your shower? Have you gone over to the other side? Has Thirteen being hanging around with you?"

Issy was getting exasperated. "No, I want a _nurse_ to help me with my shower. Isn't that what nurses do, _Doctor_ House? All the shit work?"

Nurse Robin walked into the room carrying the shower chair and she echoed Issy's opinion. "That's right, Dr. House. You doctors are always looking for nurses to clean up your messes. I've heard that _'clean up on aisle six'_ comment more than a few times. I can handle the shower, but if you _really_ want to help, you could change the bed sheets while I'm helping Issy in the shower."

House grumbled: "Now _that_ really is a nurse's job. Plus why should you get the fun job while I have to change the dirty sheets? That is totally unfair."

"Yup, totally unfair, but she's _my_ patient whereas right now, you are just _family_, therefore it's my call. Besides I can get Issy cleaned up a lot quicker than you can and it will be less taxing on her."

House had to concede that point. "Fine, you clean her up but I'm not changing the sheets."

Robin muttered: "Not that I really expected you too. I'll have one of the nurse techs change the bed while I'm helping Issy in the shower."

House rolled his eyes but said no more. He watched closely as Robin and the nurse tech helped Issy walk into the bathroom. What he had not wanted to admit was that this was going to be the first time Issy had seen the complete damage inflicted on her by that bastard, and he'd wanted to be there for her in case she needed any comfort or reassurance. He wondered if she would be upset by her appearance and judging from her reactions after Mancini's attack, he was certain that she would be. After the tech changed the bed sheets and left the room, House crept to the bathroom door and peeked in.

He had to concede that Robin was a very efficient nurse. In the short interval, she'd wrapped Issy's cast up in plastic to protect it from the water and had gotten her settled on the shower chair. After donning a plastic apron to protect her own clothing, Robin asked: "Are you ready?"

Issy nodded; Robin untied and removed her gown.

_His mind silently begged: "Don't look down, don't look down."_

Issy looked down at her naked body. "Oh my god. I can't believe how bad I look."

Robin firmly said: "It will get better. The bruises are starting to fade already and you'll look a lot better when those stitches come out. How about I start with a shampoo? You kept saying that the dry shampoo really sucked."

"It did. A real shampoo would be great."

Issy closed her eyes as Robin lathered and scrubbed her hair. After the shampoo was finished, the nurse soaped up two washcloths, instructing Issy to wash what she could reach while Robin gently started on her feet.

House heard Issy sigh. "I'm glad that Greg is not helping me do this. I don't want him seeing me like this."

Robin shook her head as she continued her job. "Issy, that man loves you. Your appearance is not going to matter one whit to him, cuz he's _in love_. I don't know what you see in him, but he is hook, line and sinker over you."

She paused for a moment and whispered: "I heard that he's really _big_. Is that true?"

Issy giggled: "It's amazing how things get around the hospital."

"Gossip travels faster than the speed of light around here. So?"

House grinned as he watched Issy blush a most becoming shade of pink: "So what?"

Robin laughed: "I was going to ask you again if it were true, but I can tell by your face that it is. Lucky you and I bet he knows how to use it too."

"Yeah, he does, I just hope that after all this."

She trailed off; Robin immediately interjected: "Hey, hey, don't go there. That cranky old doc loves you and a couple of scars aren't going to bother him at all. You have to wait six weeks before you two can play around again; that gives you plenty of time to heal. You'll be fine."

Issy nodded but House could see the look of uncertainty on her face. She was going to need a lot of reassurance about her appearance for a while, but he felt confident that he and Mt. Gregory would be able to convince her that she was still one hot babe. It would be a long six weeks until he could make love to her again, but he was not going to rush things. He could wait until she was completely healed, physically and emotionally, before having sex again.

His thoughts were interrupted by Issy's next comment. "Damn, my legs are as hairy as a man's. I really need a shave."

Robin dug through the bucket of supplies. "Sorry, no razor in here. We'll shave your legs tomorrow. I don't want to tire you out with your first shower or your boyfriend will throw a temper tantrum."

After a few more minutes, House heard Robin say: "OK, I think you're clean. How do you feel?"

"Much better. Thank you Robin."

"No problem, Issy. Let's get you dried off and into a clean gown."

House backed away from the door at that point. They would be leaving the bathroom shortly and he didn't want to be caught eavesdropping. As he headed towards the chair, there was a knock at the door. He looked up to see the two Princeton detectives, and three other men at the door. Great. The strangers were probably the lawyer and detectives from Akron. He stepped outside to greet them so that Issy would have a few moments to get back into bed before the emotionally draining part of her day got started.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The tall slim redheaded man with a vague resemblance to Nurse Robin stepped forward first. "Dr. House? I'm Adam Howard."

House shook his proffered hand and then nodded as Howard introduced the other two strangers as Akron Detectives Brandon McWhorter and Lee Jennings. McWhorter was young, well built with a full head of thick brown hair. His jaws moved constantly as he chomped on a huge wad of gum, giving House the feeling that the man had just quit smoking and needed a new source of oral gratification. Jennings, on the other hand, was almost bald, with just a thin fringe of graying hair around his head, and much closer to retirement age. His manner was calm, but his scrutinizing eyes told House that the man didn't miss a trick.

Detective Ludovic cleared his throat and said: "You wanna fill him in on the news before we go see Isabelle? Dr. House doesn't think that we can break the news gently enough for Isabelle's delicate state."

The look that Detective Jennings shot Ludovic indicated to House that the older man did not approve of Ludovic's attitude. He turned his attention to House and said in a calm manner: "You wanted the new information first so that Ms. Walker could be told gently, I understand?"

House nodded: "That's correct."

"You understand that I am under no obligation to give you this information without Ms. Walker's approval. She is the victim and it is to her that my responsibility lies."

House clenched his jaw. "I understand that. I just don't want anyone describing the state of her dad's body to her after eighteen years under water. I don't feel that she needs that mental image."

Jennings glanced at Ludovic, shook his head and then addressed House. "I assure you, there is no need for me to give her that type of information. Look, Dr. House, I know you are concerned about her emotional state of mind, but I worked sex crimes for ten years before being transferred to the Major Case Squad. I've spoken to a lot of victims and surviving relatives. I've learned to state the simple facts and not give a lot of extraneous details. But you should be aware, that if Ms. Walker attends the trial, she will hear it all."

House shook his head: "That's a long time off and she'll be in a stronger state of mind, by then. _Right now_, is what I'm concerned about."

"I will simply state the facts. The VIN confirmed that the car was registered to her dad. He was identified by dental records and cause of death was confirmed as a broken neck."

Even though it was what House had suspected, the confirmation was still a bit of a shock. "So she did it?"

Jennings cautiously replied: "It's not my job to decide if someone is guilty or innocent. But it would seem that her confession matches our findings."

Robin poked her head out of the door at this point and hissed. "Guys. Issy knows you're here and the longer you stand out here, the more nervous she is getting. Why don't you come in and get started before the suspense becomes too much for her?"

Jennings looked at House who nodded his readiness to proceed. Robin opened the door and the men trooped in. After greeting her cousin with a quick hug, Robin closed the door and went back to her other duties.

Issy was sitting upright in the bed, eyes wide as she watched the men surround her. House sensed her apprehension, and sat down on the bed next to her. He took her hand, gave her a small kiss on the cheek and whispered in her ear. "That shower feel good?"

Her eyes met his. "I feel cleaner, but I'm nervous."

He squeezed her hand. "I'll be right here."

The attorney stepped forward. "Isabelle, I'm Adam Howard, prosecutor for the city of Akron. We spoke on the phone."

She nodded: "I remember. You're Robin's cousin."

"That's right. Let me introduce you to Detectives Lee Jennings and Brandon McWhorter of the Akron Police Department."

In a small voice, Issy said: "Hi."

House could feel her small hand trembling and he clasped it between both of his. He wished that he could do more, but this was an ordeal that she would have to go through herself. All he could do was support her as best he could.

Detective Jennings pulled the straight back chair closer and sat down. House was glad that he seemed to be taking the lead.

"Ms. Walker, we have some news for you."

He hesitated and waited for Issy to nod before proceeding.

"The VIN was traced and it confirmed that the car was registered to your dad, John Walker."

He paused and let that sink in.

In a soft voice, Issy replied: "I figured that. The bumper sticker, I knew it would be his car. Was he, was he in it?"

Jennings nodded: "Yes. Dental records confirmed it. I'm sorry for your loss."

Issy mumbled: "Thank you."

Her thoughts flew in a million directions, still not quite able to comprehend the facts completely. House squeezed her hand in a consoling manner, but it wasn't enough. She needed the comfort of her little ritual but her backpack was under the bed back at the apartment. Pookie wasn't here. Even if he was, she certainly couldn't drag out a dirty stuffed animal in front of all these people. With her broken arm, she hugged the bed pillow to her side as a poor substitute for Pookie.

House took note of her action and frowned: "Are your ribs sore?"

That seemed like a good excuse for her actions and she mumbled: "A little bit." She let House fuss over her for a minute, getting her more comfortable in the bed and then he picked up her hand again.

They were all looking at her and it was making her more and more uncomfortable. In a flat voice, she asked the question that she wanted answered the most. "Did Arlene kill him?"

If her use of her mother's given name surprised Detective Jennings, he did not let on. "The coroner has confirmed that his neck was broken at the C1-2 level which would be consistent with some extreme trauma, like a car accident or falling down a flight of stairs."

"But the car isn't damaged, is it?"

Jennings shook his head. "No, there is no damage to the car consistent with a motor vehicle accident."

"She pushed him down the stairs and killed him."

"That is what she confessed to and it is a highly likely possibility. The coroner did tell me that death was instantaneous and that Mr. Walker did not suffer."

Issy hugged the pillow tightly. "That's good. I'm glad he didn't suffer. So even, if she had called EMS right away, it wouldn't have helped."

"According to the coroner, no."

She took a few minutes to absorb the news, then she asked: "So w-what happens now?"

Jennings seemed slightly puzzled by her question: "We're here to get your statement so that we have enough evidence to charge the suspects with as many felonies as possible, so that we can put them away for a long time."

"No, I know t-that, but, w-what I mean is, w-what happens to Daddy now? I know you have to t-take photos and gather evidence like on TV, right? But w-what about after t-that? W-where does Daddy go w-when you're f-finished w-with him?"

House felt a tightening in his chest from her question. The stutter and the intonation of her voice made her sound so young and so scared. In his mind, he could picture a drawer in the morgue containing the skeleton that used to be Issy's beloved daddy and he found himself grieving for a man that he never met.

In a gentle tone, Detective Jennings replied: "Ms. Walker, you're the next of kin. You'll have to tell us what you want us to do."

Tears pooled in her eyes and her lip trembled. "I, I d-don't know."

"That's OK. You don't have to decide right now. We can hold him until you are well enough to have a funeral or whatever you decide."

What did she want? It was so hard to think of Daddy lying on a cold slab in a morgue back in Akron. It just wasn't right. He deserved better than that. At least he was no longer in that watery grave anymore. He needed a better resting place after being sunk in that car all this time.

She turned to House and her voice hitched as she asked: "D-do you t-think that I c-could have a f-funeral for Daddy? Is t-that d-dumb to w-want one so many years after the f-fact?"

Swiftly he said, "No, it's not dumb. I think it's a great idea. Your dad deserves a proper burial."

She swallowed hard: "I t-think I'd like t-that. But f-funerals cost a lot of money, don't t-they? I don't t-think I have t-that kinda money."

Before House could tell her that he'd pay for it himself, Adam Howard interjected: "Don't you worry about the finances. Your dad had a life insurance policy at Goodyear that obviously was never paid out. The interest has been accruing on it all this time. There's more than enough money there to cover the expenses."

McWhorter spoke for the first time: "There's also a victim's fund in Ohio that is set up to help defray the cost of funerals. We'll get them involved as well."

House squeezed her hand: "Don't worry about the money. It's covered. You just let us know what you want to do."

She blinked hard in an attempt to keep the tears from falling: "I'm not s-sure. It doesn't h-have to b-be anything f-fancy. I mean, w-who's going to c-come after all t-these years? I just w-want a little s-service and then maybe he could be b-buried near his p-parents. I w-want him to have a s-stone and then I can visit him once in a w-while."

In a kind voice, Detective Jennings said: "We can arrange all of that. You just let us know when. There's no rush."

Issy murmured: "Thank you." Then she turned and pressed her face into the pillow.

House leaned over her, pressed his cheek against hers and gently stroked her hair. They stayed like that for several moments until Issy took a deep breath and whispered: "I'm OK."

House sat back up and looked deeply into her eyes. "Are you sure you're ready to do this?"

Issy nodded and said in a determined tone: "Let's nail the bastards."


	66. Chapter 66

**Chapter 66**

The deposition took most of the day. House had heard most of the details before on that horrible night when his parents had taken them to dinner and he had taken his anger out on Issy by anally raping her. The memory of his actions once again filled him with disgust; he was fortunate that Issy had forgiven him for that. Sadly, he knew it was because she considered that type of treatment to just be part of life and didn't realize that she deserved anything better. Well, when this was all over, he was going to show her the things that she truly deserved. If she had thought that a trip to New York City had been something amazing, she was going to be truly stunned by Paris.

Issy tried her best to be strong throughout the deposition, but she stuttered throughout most of the interview and broke down a few times. When it happened, they would pause and give her sufficient time to cry it out. Each time, they asked her if she wanted to get some rest and reconvene tomorrow. And every time, she shook her head, dried her tears and kept going. House admired her fortitude; she really was a strong amazing woman.

With a short break for lunch, they finally finished around 5PM. Issy had not been able to remember the name of the doctor who had molested her under the guise of giving her a gynecological exam for birth control pills, but when she described the house and the neighborhood, Detective Jennings nodded knowingly.

"Yeah, we knew that perv. Dr Leonard Williamson. He had been charged with multiple counts over the years but we had been unable to make any of them stick. He died a few years back, lung cancer. Now, Al Bessler and Roland Stanley on the other hand. They are still alive and working at Goodyear."

Issy asked: "C-can you, c-can you arrest t-them after all t-these years? You only have m-my word on it."

McWhorter replied: "That's enough to arrest them. Once we get them down to the stationhouse, we'll have to see what we can sweat out of them. Word on the street is that Roland Stanley went to A.A., found God, got clean and sober. I wanna see if he's made it to Step Nine yet."

"W-what's S-step Nine?"

The young detective's eyes twinkled as he answered: "Making direct amends to the people that he harmed with his drinking habit. I'd say confessing to rape, squealing on the other people who were there and testifying against them in a court of law would go a long way to making amends, wouldn't you?"

Issy's mouth fell open. "Wow. You c-could c-convince him to do t-that to make amends to me?"

He gave her a rakish smile. "I'll do my best."

Issy stared at McWhorter for a few minutes and then she smiled for the first time since the detectives walked in. "You gonna get all 'Elliott Stabler' on him, aren't you?"

The other men chuckled at her _Law & Order_ _SVU_ reference, but McWhorter merely grinned. "Elliott and I do have a few things in common. We hate sex offenders and we _love_ putting them behind bars."

His partner smirked: "And, like Stabler, you do occasionally throw your weight around in the interrogation room."

McWhorter protested: "Hey, I gotta put all the weight lifting to good use. It's not _all _about impressing the babes, you know? I might have to save your sorry old ass from some meth head hulk one of these days."

Jennings rolled his eyes. "My sorry old ass thanks you in advance. Can we get back to the business at hand? Help me out here, counselor, but if we can get Roland Stanley to flip on Frank Livingstone, it would help the case, right?"

Adam Howard answered: "Having a corroborating witness will definitely help. I'm actually hoping for more than one. Arlene seems to be very cooperative so far. She seems to have a lot of remorse."

Issy stuck her chin out in a stubborn manner. "Good. She should have tons of it."

"As long as she has enough to testify, that's all that matters."

Issy nodded and sank back into the pillow. She shot a pleading look at House and he squeezed her hand.

"Issy needs some rest. Are you guys done for the day?"

The detectives looked at each other, but it was the attorney who answered. "We have enough for now. I'll file this deposition and get them extradited back to Ohio to answer the charges. You did a great job today, Issy, and we will keep you posted on everything."

Her eyes were already closed but she murmured: "Thank you."

House escorted them to the door. His last words to the men echoed Issy's: "Nail the bastards."

McWhorter, the cocky young detective, was the only one who answered: "We will, Dr. House. We will."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Giving the deposition had taken its toll on Issy. Although she tried to believe Greg when he reminded her that she had been just a child and that it was not her fault, she still couldn't help feeling ashamed by what had happened to her all those years ago. She wondered what would have happened if she had been brave enough to tell someone back then. Would she have been believed? Would Frank have been arrested? She shook her head at her ponderings. It was a waste of time to speculate on what might have been; it was too late to go back now.

She kept her eyes closed, feigning sleep while House channel-surfed. He had heard many of the details before, but it was hard repeating them in front of him and in front of the other men. They were very nice to her even when she cried, but she just couldn't get over the feeling of _shame_ that coursed through her body. How much worse would it be when she had to testify in court and repeat all of this in front of so many people? She decided that she didn't want to think about that right now.

Her thoughts shifted to Daddy. She could barely stand the thought of his body lying in his sunken car all those years. As foolish as it may seem, she did really want to have a funeral for him, but she had never been to one and had no idea how to plan one. Maybe that attorney could help her with it; Greg was already doing so much for her, that she hated to ask him for anything else. It would only need to be a small service anyway, just her and Greg, although Wilson might be kind enough to attend too. Maybe some of Daddy's old friends from Goodyear would come; they had probably wondered what happened to him too. She stretched her mind back and tried to remember some of the men. Faces floated in and out but the names escaped her except for one. _Flaco._ That wasn't his real name, but that's what Daddy always called the tall thin man. Flaco had been a Bears fan too and often came over on Sunday afternoons to watch the games with Daddy. He'd bring a bag of pretzels, a six-pack of Miller and some orange Tootsie Pops for Issy. Remembering those Sunday afternoons, sitting on the couch between Daddy and Flaco, watching the Bears and sucking on a Tootsie Pop, made her smile at the memory. In a way, it kind of reminded her of watching football this past fall with Greg and Wilson.

She felt a scruffy cheek rub against hers and a whisper: "I saw that smile. I knew you weren't really asleep. Whatcha smiling at?"

Issy opened her eyes and stared up into Greg's blue eyes. No matter how many times she looked at him, she was always amazed by the intensity of the color of his eyes. His expression was so kind and loving that she felt relaxed enough to tell him exactly what was on her mind.

"I was remembering Sunday afternoons watching the Bears with Daddy and his friend Flaco. I just can't remember his real name."

"Guess he was a toothpick kinda guy, huh?"

"Yeah, he was really skinny. He'd always bring me some orange Tootsie Pops when he came over. Those were good days. I wonder if he's still around."

"We can find out, baby. We can get the cops to ask around at Goodyear for a guy with that nickname. I'm sure your dad wasn't the only one who called him that."

Issy closed her eyes for a moment and then said: "No, I remember going to a cook-out at someone's home. A bunch of guys were there from Goodyear and everyone called him Flaco."

"So everyone knows him by that name. If he's still at Goodyear, we'll be able to find him. If he's not, someone there will remember him and be able to tell us his real name. Why did you want to find him?"

"Well, he was a good friend of Daddy's and I thought, maybe, he might come to the funeral."

House kissed her forehead. "Yeah, he just might. We'll find him, baby. I'll text the cops about it."

She smiled up at him: "Thanks. You're so good to me."

"Naw, you got that backwards. You're the good one. You put up with _my_ cranky ass."

He stroked her cheek. "You were great today. You were really brave. I'm very proud of you."

"I didn't feel very brave. I really wanted."

When she didn't complete her thought, House prompted her: "Wanted what, baby?"

She bit her lip and then whispered: "My dog. I w-wanted my dog. But t-that was s-stupid cuz it's not like he's here or like I wouldn't be embarrassed to d-drag him out in f-front of all those guys."

He gently kissed her cheek. "What if I told you he was here?"

Eyes wide with surprise, Issy gasped: "What?"

House walked over to the duffel bag that Wilson had brought to him. He reached in and pulled out Issy's old backpack. "I had Wilson bring it with some other stuff from the apartment. I specifically forbade him from looking inside and I don't think he did."

He set the backpack on the bed and let her unzip it. The look on her face when she pulled the dog out almost made him want to weep. It was amazing how much comfort she received from that dirty old stuffed animal. As she cradled the dog in her arms, he realized that the dog had been her only source of comfort for many years, but things were different now.

"Scootch over."

Issy looked up at him and smiled. He toed off his shoes and crawled into the bed next to her.

"C'mere."

Still cuddling the dog, Issy wormed her way into his arms and laid her head on his shoulder.

House murmured: "How's this?"

Issy let out a contented sigh: "Very nice."

"Yeah, it would be perfect if we were back in our bed, in our apartment, huh?"

Issy smiled against his chest. _Our_ bed. _Our_ apartment. Despite her flaws, he really did seem to love her. As the events of the day dissipated from her mind, Issy relaxed in the arms of the man she loved. She wasn't alone anymore.

"Yes, Greg, _that_ would be perfect."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Keith Kabat crossed the threshold of Body Shots with some trepidation. Not that he didn't enjoy coming to the club under ordinary circumstances; he liked boobs, beaver and lap dances as much as the next man, but he wasn't here for pleasure tonight. This was all business; Angelo had promised him a big story, the front-page type.

Kabat's trepidation was due to the fact that he was 45 minutes late and Angelo was not a man who liked to be kept waiting. It wasn't Kabat's fault that he was late; there was too much damn air traffic backed up over Newark and his plane circled the airfield for an extra 30 minutes before they got the clearance to land. He had sprinted to his car and driven to Trenton as fast as he could, but there was no helping the fact that he was late. All he could do was explain himself and hope that Angelo wasn't too pissed.

The goon at the front door had recognized him and let him in without paying the cover charge. He hurried to Angelo's usual table and found the man watching the action on stage and sipping on a scotch. The bottle sat on the table and an empty glass beside it. As Kabat sank into the empty chair, Angelo growled: "You're late."

Kabat made his excuses; Angelo rolled his eyes and waved his hand as if he were shooing away an annoying fly. "I almost gave up on you and called your good buddy Salvadore. He'd give his left nut for this story. Lucky for you, that I was distracted by our newest girl. Check her out; that redhead with the gorgeous tits."

The redhead was luscious and Kabat commented that he wouldn't mind getting a piece of that. Angelo smirked and said: "Not tonight, buddy boy. That one's all mine tonight. She's a natural too. We let her keep a landing strip so the customers can see that she's a true redhead. Wait until she takes off the G-string and you'll see."

They watched the rest of the show, and Angelo did not lie. The new girl was definitely a natural redhead. When the song ended, the girls filed off the stage looking for customers and the redhead came right to their table.

Angelo held out his arms. "Come to Papa, baby."

The woman immediately straddled his lap. Kabat found that his pants were suddenly too tight as he watched the gorgeous naked woman grind slowly against his companion's crotch. Angelo buried his face in the valley between her luscious melons and she pressed him even closer.

Suddenly he smacked her ass and said: "Go make some money, baby. I'll see you at 2AM. If you take anyone into the back, blowjobs only. I'm not fucking a used pussy tonight. You get me?"

The woman gave him a sultry smile and said: "Your big Italian salami is worth the wait, boss. I'll see you at 2."

He let out an evil laugh, smacked her ass again and watched as she strutted across the room. She easily found a lap dance customer and was straddling him within minutes of walking away from their table.

Angelo gulped down the rest of his scotch, and then poured two fingers worth into each glass. "Now, down to business."

He reached into his pocket, pulled out a photo and showed it to Kabat. "Do you know who this is?"

Kabat studied the photo for a moment and then shook his head. "She looks familiar but I can't place her. She's really hot, though. Does she work here cuz I wouldn't mind a piece of her?"

Angelo chuckled his evil laugh again. This time the hairs on the back on Kabat's neck stood up. This guy was one scary dude and he would not want to make an enemy out of him.

"It's kind of a long story. Sit back, have some scotch and listen."

By the time that Angelo finished the whole story, Kabat's fingers were itching to type it up. This was definitely front-page news and he was going to score big with his boss on this one. The only problem was that it was now 2AM and the paper was already being printed out for the early edition. When he explained that to Angelo, the man gave him a benevolent smile. "Don't worry about it, my boy. Friday's paper is fine. Take your time and write a great story."

The redhead headed towards their table with a smile on her face and Kabat knew that the meeting was over. As he rose to leave, Angelo stopped him with these words: "Take the photo too. Might as well have a visual to go along with the story."

Kabat thanked him profusely and was smiling as he walked out of the club. His name was going to be on a front-page by-line this Friday. He might even end up with a raise from this exclusive story. Any thoughts of sleep or getting laid had long fled his mind. All he wanted to do now was get this story down on paper.


	67. Chapter 67

**Chapter 67**

_Two days later_

_Friday June 6__th_, _2008_

For only the third time in his life, Wilson had overslept. Anyone else would have considered it excusable. Wilson was not only carrying his normal caseload, he was consulting with House's team, doing his clinic duty and providing emotional support and food for Issy and House. He had brought them breakfast every morning and dinner every night. After dining and visiting with them, he'd finally arrive home around 10PM at which time he just collapsed into bed. The last three days had been particularly rough. Tuesday had seen the surprise appearance of Issy's mother and stepfather and the startling news about her father's death. Wednesday had been the deposition and while Wilson had not been in the room for that, House had told him later how rough that had been on Issy. On Thursday, there had been a few more questions from the attorney and the happy news that the perpetrators had been extradited back to Ohio. Then Issy had received a certified letter from Crimestoppers. She had received a five thousand dollar reward for her assistance in solving the Cooper kidnapping. At first, she had not wanted to keep the money, but House insisted that she deserved it. He finally convinced her to put it in the bank and she could decide what to do with it later. If she really felt like she didn't deserve it, she could always donate it to charity or give it to the Cooper kids. Issy agreed to the plan, but as she didn't have a bank account, Wilson had gone to the nearby Wachovia branch to get the forms for her to set one up. Once everything was filled out and signed, Wilson took everything back to the bank for her. After that, he had run back to the hospital, saw two more patients, made his rounds on the oncology floor, went out and picked up dinner for the three of them. After eating and visiting, it was 10:30 by the time he got home. The emotional stress and physical toll finally caught up with him that night and thus he slept through his alarm on Friday morning.

When his eyes finally opened, he blinked in wonder at the abnormal amount of light in the room. A glance at his alarm clock told him why.

"Crap!"

He leaped out of bed only to stub his toe against the bedpost. He sank back on the bed with a groan, holding his aching toe in his left hand.

As he waited for his toe to stop throbbing, Wilson took a deep breath. There was nothing on his schedule until 10:30AM. That gave him one and one-half hours to get to PPTH. There was enough time for him to perform his usual morning ablutions, hit the bagel shop and the newsstand and check on Issy before his first appointment. Feeling a tad bit more relaxed, he limped off to the bathroom.

He hit the newsstand first, grabbing the Princeton Herald and the NY Times. Just as he was about to head to the cashier, the headline of the Trenton Times caught his eye.

He stared at it for a long moment and then slowly reached out to pick up a copy. He read the cover page and then flipped inside to read the rest of the story. The other two newspapers fell numbly from his hand as he hastened to the cashier to pay for the Times. Bagels forgotten, Wilson drove as quickly as possible to PPTH.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Folded newspaper tucked under his arm, Wilson stepped hesitantly into the room. House looked up from his Gameboy and casually assessed the visitor.

"You're late and I don't see that friendly white bag from Bageland. You expect me to start my day without my 'everything' bagel?"

Wilson glanced around the room. "Where's Issy?"

"Out strolling the halls with Chase and Taub. Building up her strength so that we can go home tomorrow. Now that the cops have taken the perverts back to Ohio, she's really perked up and is anxious to get out of here. Why are you looking for her?"

When Wilson did not reply, House glanced up again from the Gameboy and scrutinized him closely.

Wilson was nervously running his fingers through his hair until it was all standing on end. House frowned; he couldn't remember seeing Wilson look this agitated since the first time he'd met him in New Orleans at that medical conference where Wilson had been served with divorce papers.

Slowly House asked: "Wilson. What the fuck is going on?"

Wilson let out a long sigh. "I think this is bad. You better look at this."

He pulled the paper out from under his arm and held it out. House stared at it for a moment before slowly taking it from Wilson. He unfolded it and his eyes immediately grew wide as he read the headline.

"Hero is a Hooker!"

The accompanying photo was grainy but it was unmistakably Issy. She was wearing the same hot little sailor suit that she had been wearing when he first met her.

He quickly read the article before hissing: "Fuck!"

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck. "This is bad, right?"

House shot him his _'are you an idiot?'_ look.

"_Bad?_ This is way beyond bad. Remember how upset she was about people finding out about her childhood? She never wanted anyone to find out about her past. It was bad enough when they found out about the child abuse, but she had been a _victim_. People give you _sympathy_ when you're a victim. You may not want it, but it's better than being called a _whore,_ which is what is going to happen now."

House tossed his Gameboy onto the table without even pausing the game, a bad sign in Wilson's mind. He got to his feet and said: "We need to find her before someone else shows her this newspaper."

"Or before it hits TV or Internet news. My god, everyone who has read about her being a hero is now going to hear this."

House shot him a withering look. "And think that she's nothing but a whore. Yeah. Thanks for that visual. I feel so much better now."

They hurried down the hall looking for her.

Wilson asked: "How are you going to tell her?"

House shrugged as he peered down the hallway to his right looking for her. "Beat the hell outta me. I just want to get her away from anyone who might spring it on her while I try to figure that out."

They finally spied her on the third hallway from ICU. Unfortunately they had not been fast enough. The bitchy twins and two of their sidekicks had already confronted her in the hallway. All four girls were flashing copies of the Trenton Times in front of Issy's face and laughing at her. House cringed at their high-pitched laughter and hastened his step. He was close enough to hear one of the twins call Issy a whore, before Issy's face went white as a sheet and she fainted in a heap on the floor.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House yelled: "Get the fuck away from her."

The two comrades stepped back but the twins were not deterred. Having Daddy's money to back them up all their lives made them bolder than brass.

One cried out: "I can't believe we were so silly to believe that you took her to places like New York for the weekend, when all this time she was just your little whore. Did you pay her every time you fucked her or did you pay her by the week?"

The words stung House, but he didn't let on. There was no explaining to most people what had gone on between him and Issy. Granted it had started out as a business arrangement, but he had fallen in love with her, and no one was going to treat his woman that way.

He hissed to Chase: "Pick her up and get her back to her room. Stay with her, both of you."

Chase bent down and scooped up the still unconscious Issy. With Taub dogging his heels, he headed back to ICU.

Then he turned back to the twins with fire in his eyes. "My girlfriend is not a whore. This article was obviously written by some malicious person bent on revenge. Was it you? Did you photoshop her head onto some stripper's body?"

The sidekicks turned to each other with incredulous looks on their faces as if the thought that the article could have been faked had never occurred to them. One of the twins looked a tad remorseful but the other attacked back. "This article quoted a source from that elite strip club Body Shots. I've heard that a lot of doctors go there. I bet you met her there. She probably gave you a blowjob or more in the back room."

"How do you know about that club? Is that where your boyfriend Dr. Robinson goes when he can't get what he needs from you? Wonder if he goes down on _those_ girls?"

Ashley's nostrils flared in anger. "I give him everything he needs. He doesn't have to go there and consort with whores. Everyone in this hospital has heard the stories about you and your hookers, Dr. House, now it seems you've made one your girlfriend. I'm sure that little tidbit of news will just enhance your reputation around here."

"I'm not worried about my reputation. My girlfriend is a hero; a brave woman who saved two little girls from a pervert at a huge cost to her own personal safety and well-being."

The twin lifted her chin defiantly at House: "She _was_ a hero. Now she's just a whore. Let's see if Dr. Cuddy still gives her a job after this. Wonder if the college will even let the little whore walk at graduation. They do have a morals clause, you know."

The other twin squealed: "Oh my god. Imagine not being able to graduate after attending classes for the whole two years. Wouldn't that be funny?"

Panic welled up in House's chest. No, it would definitely not be funny if Issy were not allowed to graduate. He had to make sure that _that_ did not happen.

Wilson muttered: "We should get back to Issy."

House gave him a nod. To the twins, he growled: "Mark my words. Issy will graduate and she will have a job here at PPTH. It's not up for debate."

Ashley laughed: "Wanna put your money where your mouth is?"

House gave her a nasty smile: "I'd love to steal your Daddy's money, but I can't be bothered dealing with pond scum like yourself. Why don't you get on your brooms and fly away now?"

He turned and headed back to ICU, Wilson at his side.

Behind him, a twin screamed: "The whole hospital will know about Issy before the day is over."

House lifted his left hand and showed them his middle finger as he limped through the ICU doors.

Wilson smirked: "Well, that was really mature."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House scowled: "Believe me, I wanted to do more than just shoot a bird at those little bitches. It just figures that they would be the ones to drop the bomb on her. Christ!"

As they hurried towards Issy's room, Wilson said: "What you said about the picture being photoshopped and the article written for revenge was good. Is that the spin you are going to put on this?"

"It wasn't bad for the spur of the moment, but do you think it will fly? Cuz, seriously, I'm open to ideas, here. If Issy is not allowed to graduate because of this article, it will completely devastate her."

Wilson shook his head. "I don't know about the revenge angle, but to claim the article is just a bunch of lies and the picture is photoshopped seems like a good idea to me. I can't think of anything else."

"Let's see if Chase and Taub buy it and we'll go from there."

When they walked into the room, Issy was nowhere in sight. Chase pointed towards at the bathroom door: "Issy woke up just as we were coming into the room and insisted that I put her down. She made a beeline for the bathroom and hasn't come out since."

Taub said: "We've knocked and asked her if she's OK, but she won't answer. We figured that we would just give her some privacy until you got back."

Chase ran his fingers through his long hair. "Who would do this? Who would print such trash about her? She's a _hero_, for Christ's sake. How could they slander her this way?"

Taub shrugged in his usual nonchalant way. "Mancini's revenge."

Chase frowned: "What are you talking about?"

"The article stated that Issy had worked for Body Shots. That club is owned by a mobster named Mancini, who is a real piece of work. No girl leaves his employment without his permission or he cuts her up so that she can't work again. Maybe this time he decided on a different tactic."

It had been a long time, but back in his plastic surgery practice, he had tried to minimize knife scars on two women's chests. They had both been former employees of Mancini's establishment and had confessed to Taub what had happened to them. In fact, the cuts were very similar to what had happened to Issy back in October.

A light bulb went on in Taub's brain.

House could see it the moment that Taub realized the truth. He _knew_. He knew what those cuts were from.

Chase was so angry that he was sputtering. "What the fuck are you saying, Taub? Are you trying to say that this article is true, because I don't believe a fucking word of it!"

Taub glanced at his boss; House knew that he knew. He could see it. "No, I'm just, I don't know what I'm saying. I was just mentioning that the guy that owns that club is a real asshole. He probably thought it would be fun to smear Issy's reputation by pulling a stunt like this."

Chase persisted: "But why? Why would he hurt Issy? What's she done to him?"

The short doctor threw his hands up in the air. "I don't know. I'm just throwing theories out there. Where's the fucking whiteboard when we need it?"

House sank onto the bed and covered his face with his hands. "We don't need the whiteboard. We need."

He looked up at Wilson for guidance but, for once, Wilson had none.

Taub answered: "We need a cover story."

Chase walked up to the short man and grabbed him by his lapels. "Why do you keep saying these things as if the article were true? Issy is not that kind of girl. House, why the fuck are you letting this runt get away with this shit?"

The blond doctor glanced back at his former boss. House was tapping his cane on the floor, head down, and lost in his own thoughts.

Chase looked from House to Wilson. When the oncologist wouldn't meet his eyes, Chase gasped: "It's true? The article is true? Issy was a, a."

"Dancer."

House's reply was so soft that they could barely hear him.

Finally he raised his head and continued in a soft voice. "Issy was a dancer. You know what happened in her childhood. Is it so surprising to hear this? She ran away from home at 16 and didn't get to finish high school. Not a lot of jobs out there for high school dropouts. She fell into this, but didn't want this type of life. She wanted something better. She kept doing it to support herself while she was in nursing school, that is, until we met. Then she moved in with me and quit the job. Without permission."

Taub nodded; the wounds and the clandestine meeting that October night made sense now.

Chase stood there with his hand over his mouth, in complete shock. After a moment, he recovered enough to ask: "And you met her, here at PPTH or _there?"_

Wilson finally spoke up: "That's not really important right now. Like Taub said, we need damage control. I think our best option is to deny the story. We'll say it's all lies and the picture is photoshopped. You two can't tell anyone about this. Taub, you can't tell your wife and Chase, you can't tell Cameron. You can't tell Cuddy or the rest of the team. This is just between the four of us."

House gave them a stern look. "You are her doctors. You are sworn to confidentiality. This stays between us. And unless she brings up the subject, don't talk to her about it."

He waited until both men nodded their heads in agreement, before going on. "So we deny this. Do we issue a statement? Insist on a retraction? Or just try to lay low and hope it blows away?"

Taub shook his head: "It's a sex scandal. It won't just go away. I think you need to issue a statement denying all of it. There's no point in insisting on a retraction because you know you won't get one. Someone will show the article to Cuddy and before you know it, she'll be up here to get the truth out of you. Just have her issue a statement through the hospital's public relations department that the article is a complete fabrication."

House nodded: "Wilson, you came up with a good statement the last time we needed one. Can you pull another one out of your ass?"

Wilson smirked: "I think I can. By the way, how long has Issy been in the bathroom now?"

Chase glanced at his watch: "Too damn long."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

He walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door.

Issy curled up into a tiny ball on the bathroom floor, closed her eyes and held her breath. Maybe this was all a horrible nightmare and she would wake up soon. But the sensible part of her brain told her otherwise. She had been wide-awake and walking down the hall with Taub and Chase when they had run into the twins and their posse. Her photo on the cover of that newspaper and their horrible laughter had freaked her out so much that she fainted. When she woke up, Chase was carrying her back into her hospital room. Embarrassed that they had seen and heard all of that, Issy fled into the bathroom and shut the door.

Her worst fears had come true. Everyone knew now. The whole world knew that she was a whore. It was in the papers. She wouldn't be able to put on the TV without hearing reporters talking and laughing about her. This was going to be so embarrassing for Greg. People would be pointing at him and laughing at him. He was going to be the laughing stock of the medical community, for shacking up with a whore, posing as a nursing student. Certainly the college would not let her graduate now. They would not want to have a whore on their alumni roster.

What was she to do now? If the college didn't let her graduate, she couldn't be a nurse. She certainly couldn't go back to dancing; she was so ugly now with all these scars. She could move away and start over somewhere else, but how could she make a living while putting herself through nursing school again? And that was contingent on another school ignoring her past and accepting her into their program.

And Greg. Issy felt the tears brimming as she thought of him. He was such a wonderful man and he deserved someone much better than an ugly whore like her. She wondered if he would dump her now, or if he would keep up the pretense until she got out of the hospital. After all, there was no way that he could still love her after all of this. Even if he claimed to, she knew that she needed to do the right thing and leave him. He'd find someone more suited to him, someone who wasn't such an embarrassment. But where could she go? What would she do? Was there anywhere that she could go where she would be anonymous, or would people be pointing their fingers and laughing at her everywhere?

She curled her arms over her head, noticing the heavy weight of the cast on her head, and tucked into an even smaller ball. One small sob escaped. Daddy was dead. She was scarred for life. The whole world knew about her horrible past. Without Greg or her nursing degree, she could see no point in going on. There was nothing left to live for. She tried to remember where she left her car keys and if she had the strength to drive to the bridge or if she should consider another means to a permanent end.


	68. Chapter 68

**Chapter 68 **

Surprisingly, the door wasn't locked. House opened it slowly. Issy was curled into a small ball on the floor with her arms curled over her head. He felt a pang in his heart; she looked as if she was expecting a beating and was trying to protect her head.

He limped over to the toilet, sat down on it and leaned over to caress her back. "Issy."

She flinched at his touch but otherwise did not respond.

"Come on, baby. Let's get you back to bed. That floor is too uncomfortable for you to lie on.

Issy didn't respond. He continued to stroke her back and speak calmly to her, but to no avail. House remembered how she had hidden under the covers after the traumatic revelation of her dad's death and wondered if she was mimicking the same pattern. He noticed that she seemed to be holding her breath again and taking only small gasps of air.

House bellowed: "Chase!"

The young doctor poked his head in the door and immediately took note of the problem.

Cursing that he couldn't do this task himself, he said to Chase: "I need you to pick Issy up and put her in bed."

Chase nodded and knelt down next to her. In a soothing voice, he said: "Issy, I'm going to pick you up now, OK?"

There was no response. House gave him a nod to proceed and Chase gingerly picked her up and carried her to the bed. As soon as he laid her down, Issy immediately pulled the pillow over her head as if to hide from prying eyes. Her breathing pattern was not lost on Chase, who attached the O2 sat monitor to her finger. When the machine beeped at 92%, Chase pulled out his stethoscope.

"Issy? I need to check you over. Your O2 sats are really low. I need to make sure that you didn't injure your ribs when you fainted. I need you to take some deep breaths for me."

He held the stethoscope to her left side and asked her to take a deep breath. She didn't respond in any way. He asked her three more times, to no avail.

Trying to keep his tone light and worry-free, Chase teased: "Now, come on, Issy. Let me examine you. Don't make me call a code on you."

Finally there was a response. Issy mumbled, just barely loud enough for everyone to hear. "No code. Just let me die."

Chase and House exchanged a look. House moved closer to her side while Chase said soothingly: "Now, Issy, I know you're upset, but you don't mean that."

"Yes, I do. I want a DNR."

"Issy, you're not terminal. You don't need a DNR."

"I don't need one _right now_, but I might need one soon. And I do not want any heroic measures used to keep me alive."

House motioned Chase to move back; the young man complied. House sat on the side of the bed and attempted to lift the pillow off of Issy's face, but she grabbed it even tighter and held on for dear life.

In a gentle voice, House said: "Issy? Come on, baby. It's OK. Let me see you."

"No! It's not OK. It's never going to be OK again."

He placed a comforting hand on her back. "Yes, it will. I know you're upset right now, but this will blow over."

"How can you say that? The whole world now knows that I'm a whore."

He tried to make light of the situation, hoping to get her to see it in a different light. "Not the whole world, baby. Only the people who read the Trenton Times, and, seriously, how many people read that rag?"

She lifted the pillow and looked at him. House's jaw dropped slightly; he had never seen such a cold, dead expression on her face before.

"Yeah, today, it's the Trenton Times; tomorrow it will be the New York Times. It will be picked up by the wire services and all over the Internet. By tomorrow night, I'll be the butt of Leno's jokes."

Taub interjected: "Um, tomorrow's Saturday and Leno is not on over the weekends."

Issy gave him a withering look. "You know what I mean. I don't want my private life to be headline news. Do you know how hard I tried to hide my past? It was bad enough when Wilson found out. Now _everyone _knows that I'm a whore."

Chase jumped in. "You're not a whore. You danced for a while, big deal. You're not the first girl to work her way through college doing that."

"Maybe not, but most of them do not have _that little fact_ plastered on the cover of a newspaper for the whole world to see. People are going to judge me very harshly now. They won't understand that I was doing what I had to do to survive. Two days ago, I was a hero, who saved those little girls. Now look at the headline: _'Hero is a Hooker'._ That is what everyone will say about me. Look at what just happened in the hallway with the Doublemint Twins. That may have been the first encounter, but it sure as hell won't be the last."

House growled: "Those twins are just a couple of bitches who've had it in for you ever since the beginning. Other people are not going to do that to you."

Issy shrugged: "Maybe not as confrontational as that. What they will do is stop talking when I walk into the room and laugh behind my back. And that's what they are going to do to you too."

In an incredulous tone, House asked: "You're worried about _my_ reputation?"

Chase chuckled: "Issy, surely you know that your boyfriend has a lousy reputation."

Issy rolled her eyes. "Duh. He's been known as a misanthropic but brilliant doctor who can solve cases that no one else can. Now thanks to me, he'll be known as the world-famous diagnostician with a whore for a girlfriend."

"Issy, I don't give a rat's ass what people think of me."

The look on her face was so sad. "I do. I don't want people thinking badly of you because of me. You deserve better than that."

Barely able to believe that he was having such an intimate conversation in front of witnesses, House sought to comfort her. "When I told you that I loved you, I meant it. It was not conditional on people not discovering your past. The fact that they know doesn't affect how I feel about you."

He seemed sincere and she wanted to believe him, but there was just no way that it could be true. There was bound to be an effect when certain people found out.

"How are you going to feel when your parents find out?"

House stiffened for a moment and quickly resumed a neutral posture, but he wasn't fast enough for Issy not to notice.

Issy nodded: "That won't be an easy conversation to have, will it? It would be better to tell them that you had no idea what I'd done in the past and that things are over between us now. Otherwise it will be hell for you."

House hissed: "I don't give a flying fuck what anyone thinks, including them. No one who matters is going to care about your past because they can see the wonderful person that you are."

Issy was close to tears now: "And what do you think the college is going to do with this news? Do you think they are going to let me graduate now? They have a morals clause; that's one of the main reasons why I tried so hard to hide what I was doing. I am totally screwed as a nurse. I just wasted two years of study. They are not going to let me graduate and even if they did, Dr. Cuddy is not going to give me a job here."

Wilson interjected: "For God's sake, Issy, you were kidnapped and injured _while on _your nursing rotation. You are a hero and it would sorely damage their reputation to _not_ let you graduate. _That_ is publicity that they won't appreciate."

"Like _that_ would make the papers?"

A devious smile crossed Wilson's face. With his fingers, he made quotation marks in the air. "The headline would read: _'College refuses to let hero graduate due to past occupation.'_ Oh, yes. It will most assuredly make the papers if that were to happen. You _will _graduate with your class and Cuddy has a job waiting for you. Cameron wants you in the ER if you still want to work there and if you don't, there's a spot on the oncology floor for you. Sophia has been nagging at me to get you on her team."

Issy thought for a minute. Could Wilson really be telling the truth? Could she possibly still obtain her dream in spite of today's headlines? She was afraid to hope; things rarely turned out well for her. But if she could just have her degree, at least she would be able to work and support herself. She could still possibly obtain a little house and a dog. Losing Greg would be devastating, but she expected that to happen anyway. After all, she only found out a few days ago that he professed to love her. She could just forget that he said that and move on. That is, if Wilson were right, and she got to graduate.

House took her silence as a positive sign. "It's going to be OK, Issy. You _will_ graduate and when you are feeling well enough to work again, there will be a job here for you. Do not doubt that. It will happen."

She badly wanted to believe him and Wilson, but she didn't want to get her hopes up too high. Karma had been cruel to her in the past. She sank back onto her pillow, closed her eyes and said: "I'll believe it when I see it."

House stifled a groan. He didn't see any way that he was going to be able to convince her that things would work out. Perhaps he should contact her advisor and double check to make sure that there would be no problems. If she balked, he'd sic Wilson on her. The man seemed to have a strategy in place and he welcomed his friend's help. This last week had taken its toll on him; he was beyond exhausted and wanted nothing more than for the two of them to leave the hospital and hole up somewhere quiet for Issy to heal.

A rapping at the door interrupted his musings. Wilson had wisely locked it and had been standing guard while this whole conversation had taken place. Now his friend peered through the closed blinds and then turned back to address the others. "It's Cuddy."

House muttered: "Of course."

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Issy staring at him. He cupped her cheek and said: "It's going to be OK. We are going to tell Cuddy that it's all a bunch of lies and have her issue a statement refuting the article. No one is going to know the truth except for the people in this room. Everyone here is sworn to secrecy."

In a small voice, she asked: "D-do you t-think that will w-work?"

With a confidence that he did not feel, he replied: "Yes. The picture was photoshopped and some idiot decided that he wanted to give you some bad publicity cuz you seemed too goody-two-shoes for his liking. So he made up those vicious lies and fed them to some dirt-bag reporter who wanted a front-page byline. Wilson will come up with a good statement just like he did the last time, OK?"

Tears brimmed in her eyes as she whispered: "D-do you really t-think I'll be able to gr-graduate?"

He picked up her hand and planted a loving kiss on her palm. "Yes. We will make that happen."

Cuddy rapped on the door again. This time Wilson parted the blinds and flashed his index finger at her, indicating to give them another minute.

House kissed her palm again. "I need to go talk to her now. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Can I have my d-dog before you g-go?"

He hid his surprise as well as he could. She must be completely over-the-edge stressed out if she were willing to ask for her dog in front of the other guys. As he reached for the backpack, her words rang in his head: _"Just let me die."_ And he wondered just what she would do if she were unable to graduate. His heart flip-flopped in his chest; he had come so close to losing her before and he couldn't let that happen again.

He unzipped the backpack and placed it within her reach. She quickly reached in and pulled the dog out.

With a meek smile on her face, she glanced at the other doctors and said: "My d-daddy gave me this d-dog when I was f-four. Aside from one p-photo, it's all I have left of him."

In a soft voice, Chase said: "Wow. You've had him for a long time. That's really something."

She gave him a little smile and cuddled the dog closer to her chest.

"Can I have the covers, p-please?"

With Chase's help, House managed to untangle the bed sheet and pull it to her shoulders.

"No hiding your face now. I don't want your O2 sats dropping again."

Issy nodded and then she closed her eyes and curled up into a little ball with the dog clutched tightly to her chest.

With a tilt of the head, House motioned everyone to the door. He swiftly slipped Issy's cell phone into his pocket before joining them. With his back to Issy, House whispered: "Wilson, Taub, come with me. We are going to put the best spin possible on this. Chase you stay here with Issy. I'm not sure about her state of mind and I don't want her left alone."

Softly Chase asked: "Are you afraid she'll harm herself?"

House squeezed his eyes shut. "I don't know, but I don't want to give her the chance. She needs some time to assimilate all of this. Maybe she'll talk to you. You've got that whole Catholic priest wannabe, come-on-baby-confess-to-me thing going for you. And you both have drunk mothers in common."

Chase bristled a bit at House's words; they were harsh, but unfortunately true. Perhaps he could connect with Issy as they did have that in common. "I'll try to talk to her and I won't leave her alone."

House gave him a nod. "Good. The rest of you, let's go deal with the she-devil in Prada."


	69. Chapter 69

**Chapter 69**

Chase pulled the straight back chair closer to the bed and sat down. Without opening her eyes, Issy said: "So you got stuck baby-sitting me, huh?"

"I don't mind. You seem like good company."

Issy snorted: "What you're really saying is that it beats having to listen to Cuddy go on and on about this headline and Greg denying the whole thing."

He nodded. "There is that."

Issy sighed: "You must think I'm awfully pathetic? A grown woman hugging an old stuffed dog?"

"Not at all. I kept a stuffed teddy for years, long after a _boy_ should have given up that type of toy. But my Nan had given it to me; she had passed away and I couldn't bear to be parted from it. When I was 13, my father left us, and I had to become the man of the house. One day in a fit of rage I threw Teddy in the trash. I have to say I regret that now. Wouldn't mind if I still had him."

"Your dad left?"

Chase nodded. He didn't really like to talk about it, but he knew Issy would understand his dysfunctional family life. "He had published quite a few articles and had become a world famous Rheumatologist. He was constantly being asked to speak at conferences around the world. My Mum had let herself go, had gotten fat and started drinking. I think he was embarrassed by her. So one day, he left us. I rarely saw him after that. So I became the man of the house. I had to take care of Mum, clean her up after she'd get sick, that kind of thing. Her drinking got worse and then she died. Alcohol induced liver failure."

"That must have been rough. And your dad never helped out?"

Chase shook his head. "Off on his new life. Oh, he'd butt his nose in once in a while. He really hated the fact that I wanted to go to seminary and tried quite hard to talk me out of that, which of course only made me more determined to go."

"You went to the seminary? You wanted to be a priest?"

Chase let out a harsh laugh: "I thought I did, but then I realized it wasn't for me. I ended up going into medicine just like dear old dad. When I finished med school, I decided not to stay in Australia. Although we have different specialties, I didn't want to work in his shadow, so I came to the States."

"Lucky for Cameron that you made the decisions that you did."

Slowly he said: "Things worked out all right in the end, but if you had asked me when I was sixteen and cleaning up after my Mum if I had a positive feeling about the future, I would have laughed in your face. I think that's how you are feeling now. You think the light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train, not a bright happy future."

Issy asked plaintively: "Can you blame me?"

"Not at all. However, I do believe that things will work out for you and House. This is going to be a tough patch but together you'll get through it."

Issy looked away: "I'm not sure that he still wants to be with me."

"What? Are you kidding? Of course he does. House loves you."

"He just thinks he does."

Chase interrupted her: "No, Issy, I _know_ he does. For a man who hides his emotions rather well, _this_ is written all over his face. I saw him when he got the news that you had been kidnapped. He was like a madman. And when they brought you into the ER, all he could do was look at your face and say your name over and over again. He was desperate for you to regain consciousness."

"How can he possibly love me? I'm a whore."

Chase leaned forward onto his elbows and looked Issy directly in the eyes. "You're not a whore."

She hissed: "I wasn't _just_ a dancer, Chase. I really was a hooker. I slept with men for money. That's how Greg and I met. He came into Body Shots, watched me dance, stuffed bills into my garter belt and then we went in the back room for sex. He paid me three hundred bucks, half of which went to the club. So what does that make me?"

Chase was surprised that she had shared that part of her past with him, but he managed to keep his facial expression neutral. "Obviously House knows about that part of your life and he accepts that it is a part of your _past._ You have a whole new future with him, one that he clearly wants. That part of your life is over now. You've got to forgive yourself."

"Forgive myself?"

"You did what you had to do to survive. Accept that, forgive yourself and move on. Make the rest of your life about living, not about merely surviving"

He glanced at the dog that Issy was still clutching to her chest. "Do you think that your daddy would want you calling yourself ugly names and denying yourself a loving relationship and other nice things in life?"

In a small voice, Issy said: "No."

Chase tilted his head: "Well, then."

Issy thought for a moment and then asked: "I don't know if I can do that. I wouldn't know where to start. How do I forgive myself?"

"I'm not sure. As a Catholic, I'd confess my sins to a priest, get absolution and say a few Hail Mary's."

"I'm not Catholic. And would doing just _that_ make it all go away?"

"Probably not, but it's a start. You know at AA, the first step is to admit that you have a problem. For you, perhaps the first step is believing that you are a worth-while person, that you deserve happiness and that you should forgive yourself for your past actions that you are ashamed of, but did in order to survive."

"That's like three steps!"

He smiled at her: "So pick one of them and start there. When you've mastered that one, then you can move on."

She thought for a minute and then said: "I don't know, Chase. I don't know if I have the strength to carry on. It's been so hard for so long."

He didn't like her tone. It sounded too much like a person thinking about other, less pleasant, options. "Issy, I know it's tough right now, but giving up is not the answer. You and House, you'll get through this together. He was so miserable before he met you. Ever since you came into his life, he has been _much less_ miserable than I have ever seen him."

"I noticed that you didn't say he was happy."

"I'm not sure that House has ever been happy, but this is the closest I've ever seen him to that particular emotion. Wilson's known him longer, he could probably tell you."

"But everyone _knows_ now. The brilliant Dr. House has a former hooker for a girlfriend."

She was referring to herself as a _former_ hooker. Perhaps that was progress.

"Issy, he doesn't care about that. He loves you."

She turned her head. "I care. He deserves better."

"In his eyes, there is no one better than you. Do you love him?"

She bit her lip.

Chase went on. "Do you see the man he really is under the façade of gruffness that he presents to the rest of the world? Does he let you into that part of his soul?"

Issy closed her eyes and whispered: "Yes."

A small smile graced the young man's face. "You're very lucky. I believe that he lets very few people see that part of him. I've only seen glimpses in all the years I've known him. Wilson's been his friend for over 15 years, but I would bet that you know House better than Wilson does."

Issy rolled her eyes. "Well I think our level of intimacy is on a different plane than what he has with Wilson."

Chase said softly: "I'm not talking about just sex, you know."

She nodded: "I know."

"You give him what he needs, what he wants. You don't try to change him, or badger him into doing things that he doesn't want to do. You accept him as he is, warts and all, and you love him with all your heart. What more can a man ask for? And on top of it, you're smart, beautiful and sexy."

She blushed at his compliments. "I have these really big scars now."

"They are going to fade and trust me, he's not going to notice them. He loves the whole package. Does his scar diminish your feelings about him?"

"No, of course not."

Chase shrugged: "So why should your scars bother him?"

Issy shrugged but didn't answer. They sat in silence for a few minutes while she tried to absorb some of the things that Chase had told her.

Finally Chase broke the silence: "Issy, just remember, he knows about your past, he's seen the scars and nothing's changed. It may be hard for you to believe it, but he loves you just the way you are. Whenever you're feeling down, I want you to tell yourself something. _'I'm a worthwhile person and I deserve love.'_ Repeat it for me."

Issy blushed and whispered: "I'm a worthwhile person and I deserve love."

Chase gave her a warm smile. "Excellent. Just remember those words and say them to yourself whenever you're feeling discouraged. Think of them as a mantra, like a secular Hail Mary."

Issy gave Chase a wan smile and closed her eyes. Greg had told her to repeat another mantra. _'He was the adult; I was the child. It was his fault.'_ Now Chase had given her another one. She wondered how long it would take to believe either one of them, if ever.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

It took quite a while to convince Cuddy that the article was a pack of lies. House could tell by the expression on her face that she was still skeptical, but she was willing to go along with releasing the statement that Wilson had concocted.

_PPTH is shocked by the story published about Isabelle Walker's alleged past occupation. It is obvious that someone is trying to slander the good name of a woman who performed such a heroic deed by aiding in the rescue of the Cooper children. _

The story had hit the wire services by now, and the hospital was inundated with reporters again. Security had them contained in the lobby for now, but Cuddy was concerned that some of them would be able to sneak past the guards and get into the hospital. She didn't want them bothering the staff or the other patients. House didn't care about that; he just didn't want them getting to Issy.

"So what's the plan, House? Issy's been walking the halls. Surely she doesn't need to be in ICU anymore and we could really use that bed for a sicker patient."

House replied: "I don't want to move her to a regular room. There's no extra security and anyone would be able to get to her."

Cuddy pressed on: "Is she ready to get discharged?"

Taub replied: "Well, that's up to Chase since he is the attending, but I think she could go home. She'll need some help with ADL's, maybe a visiting nurse could come once a day."

House shook his head emphatically. "No nurse. I'll take care of her."

Wilson said in a cautious tone, so as not to piss off his friend: "Will you be able to help her in the shower? You know, we could get Sophia or Robin or one of the other nurses from here that she's comfortable with to come over for a few days to help out."

House scowled: "We'll get a shower chair. We'll manage and if we can't, then maybe Robin can come over and help out."

Wilson nodded but said no more. He knew how close his friend was to the tipping point. So far, he had managed to hold onto his temper better than Wilson would have expected.

Cuddy said: "So? Discharge? Today, tomorrow?"

House thumped his cane on the floor. "Chase was planning on discharging her tomorrow anyway. He just wanted her ambulating well, but she can't really do that here now. Too many prying eyes and cell phone cameras."

Taub interjected: "How about this? After Cuddy issues the statement, the reporters will hang out for a while, hoping for more. When no more is forthcoming, they will start to drift away. Why don't we plan on discharging her late tonight? We can have a car waiting by the loading dock and take her out that way, just in case some reporters might still be hanging out up front and waiting to see her leave."

House looked at Wilson; he thought for a moment and then shrugged: "Sounds like a plan. I'll wait at the loading dock with my car and you guys can bring her down. We'll hustle her into the car and take off. You wanna go home or to a hotel or what?"

"Home for now. If the reporters are there, and start causing problems, we may have to change that plan, but for right now, let's go home. We need to get a few things done first, though."

He started thinking about all the things that they would need at home for her recovery, but Cuddy interrupted his musings: "So we have a plan. I'll have the P.R. department issue this statement and you guys work on getting Issy ready for discharge late tonight. No one but us will know about it until it is just about to happen. The paperwork can be taken care of later. You just have Chase certify that she is ready to go."

Her tone was dismissive and it seemed like a good idea to get out of her face.

House rose to his feet. "My office. Now."

He turned and limped out of Cuddy's office, the other two doctors following in his wake.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson went to his office to clear his schedule for the rest of the day while House made a list of things that needed to be done. He gave Taub a list of needed supplies, like a shower chair, waterproof cover for the cast, gauze, tape, antibiotic ointment, and Mederma ointment. He instructed Taub to steal whatever he could from the hospital and to bring the items to Wilson's office. They could be loaded in Wilson's car later that night. Anything that he couldn't steal at PPTH, Taub was to go to the local medical supply store and purchase them, keeping them in the trunk of his car until later on tonight. Taub nodded his agreement and tucked the list in his shirt pocket.

When Wilson returned from making his phone calls, House was making a grocery list. It took a moment for Wilson to recover from that shock, but then he started suggesting a few items to add to that list. House grunted with annoyance: "And who's going to cook this stuff? I'm trying to make things easier for Issy. You know how she is? She is going to try to cook and clean the minute we get home. That's why I need microwave dinners, cereal and stuff like that. If the reporters are hanging around, getting food delivered might be problematic."

His best friend nodded: "You're right. How about this? Let me call Laydee. She could do the grocery shopping now and then clean up your apartment. I could ask her to make her Hungarian goulash and stick it in your refrig for tomorrow. After that, she could come over once or twice a week to cook and clean for you until Issy gets better, and I can whip up some dinners in between times."

House nodded. Issy wouldn't like it; she liked taking care of him, but she was going to have to relax and let others take care of her for a short while. Once she was feeling better, he was all for having her take over the domestic duties again. He loved the way that she pampered him by making cookies and other dishes that he liked, but he was more than ready to return the favor for a period of time.

House finalized the list and passed it to Wilson who added a few items to it before slipping it into his pocket. Then he pulled out Issy's cell phone, scrolled through the few numbers in her directory until he found Ms. Lawson's number.

"I'm calling her advisor now. I wanna make sure that there will be no problems with her graduating next Saturday. Stick around for this as I may need you for backup."

The two men nodded and House pressed 'send'. He put the phone on speaker so that they could all listen. After two rings, she answered.

"Hello?"

"Ms. Lawson? This is Dr. House."

"Oh, Dr. House! How are you? How is Issy doing?"

"She is recovering nicely and getting her strength back."

"Oh, that's wonderful. So you still expect her to be able to make graduation next Saturday?"

House arched an eyebrow, surprised that she brought up the pertinent subject so quickly. "Yes, I do. I'm sure that she will feel well enough to walk across the stage and get her diploma. I just wanted to make sure that there weren't any obstacles in her way, on your end."

In a softer tone, she asked: "Oh, you mean, because of that article in today's paper?"

"Exactly."

The woman let out an irritated sigh. "Who would do that? Say such nasty lies about Issy, after all that she has been through? There are some very mean people in this world. Don't worry about that article, Dr. House. I know it is very annoying but it will not affect her graduation. You have my word on it. I will speak to the dean of the college, Sister Mary Paul, about this and assure her that the article is a fraud."

House shuddered at the Dean's name, but managed to maintain his composure. "Thank you, Ms. Lawson. I really appreciate it. If you do find that there are any issues, may I ask you to call Dr. James Wilson? Let me give you his number."

House waited while she grabbed pen and paper and then he recited Wilson's cell number to her. "I'm afraid that with all of the publicity that if you needed to reach me that you wouldn't be able to get through to me so if there are any problems, please call Dr. Wilson."

"I certainly will, but I do not expect there to be any problems. Now, will someone be able to pick up her cap and gown? We are distributing them sometime in the middle of next week, but I don't have the exact details yet. Shall I call Dr. Wilson with those details?"

"That would be great. I could send one of my fellows over to pick it up if that's alright."

"Oh, certainly. That would be fine. Just tell Dr. Wilson to expect a call from me early next week about that."

House grinned at Wilson as he listened in on the conversation. "Will do. And thank you so much for your help, Ms. Lawson. Issy and I really appreciate it."

"Oh, Dr. House, I haven't done a thing. I will get those review notes to Issy, but I certainly wish that I could do more for her."

"Just make sure she is able to graduate and that will be sufficient."

"I will make certain of that. Please give her my best, Dr. House."

"I will do that, Ms. Lawson. Thank you and have a nice weekend. Good-bye."

House hit the 'end' key and Wilson almost choked with laughter. "I don't believe it? You actually said 'good-bye' to her? You wished her a nice weekend? What have you done with the real House?"

"Hey, I can be nice when I want to; I just don't want to most of the time."

Taub astutely observed: "And you need her on your side in case the nuns throw a fit about that article."

"Stating the obvious, short one. And I need you to do something else while you are out running errands. Get me a prepaid cell phone with one month of unlimited minutes on it. Metro PCS has one for 50 bucks. Pay cash and use the name Luke N. Laura. The only people who will have that number will be the two of you and Chase. You'll give that number to no one, not even Cuddy. If anyone wants to talk to Issy or me, you take a message and then call me about it. By now, the reporters have my home number and I expect that my answering machine is full."

Wilson said: "I can ask Laydee to go through the messages and delete them if they are from reporters and save them if they are not."

House nodded: "Sounds good. If they keep calling, I'll rip the phone out of the wall once we're home. With the prepaid cell, at least I'll know when that phone rings that it's one of you three."

He stood up. "OK. I'm heading back to Issy's room and make sure Chase is on board to discharge her tonight. You two have your assignments. Check in when you get back."

Taub stood up and said: "Um, you said to pay cash for the phone?"

House nodded: "Right. I don't want anyone tracing the credit card."

"Understood. You got any cash?"

House looked at Wilson who just rolled his eyes as he pulled out his wallet. "Here's 100 bucks. That should cover the phone and any medical supplies that you need to purchase."

Taub stuffed the bill in his pocket. "OK. I'll be off then."

Wilson called after him. "Hey, I expect change back."

It was Taub's turn to roll his eyes. "Yes, Dad."

After Taub had left the office, Wilson turned back to House and asked: "You holding up OK?"

House let out a deep sigh. "I'll feel better when I get Issy back home. I'll feel fantastic when I watch her walk across that stage and get her diploma. I'll be orgasmic when that asshole is in jail for the rest of his life. Until then."

He flipped his hand back and forth. "I'm hanging. It will be nice to sleep in our bed tonight. I'm looking forward to that. Who would have thought that I'd get tired of the OB's lounge chairs?"

"A nap is one thing; sleeping in one for a week straight is quite another."

House gave a faux shudder: "I hate to say this, but you're right. Damn, I wish Brad and Angelina would break up."

Wilson gasped at the non sequitur: "What? Where in the hell did _that _come from?"

House shrugged: "If they broke up, all the news would be on them and not on Issy."

"Good point. Didn't think of it that way."

House rose and started for the door. "What are you sitting around for? Don't you have a housekeeper to call and a grocery list to transmit?"

Wilson watched his friend hurry towards the elevators that would take him back to ICU. Softly, he said: "I'll get right on that."


	70. Chapter 70

**Chapter 70**

By 11PM, everything was in place. Laydee had shopped, cleaned, cooked and deleted any offending messages from the answering machine. Taub had managed to steal all the requested supplies from the hospital except for the Mederma ointment. He bought that at the local CVS and added it to the pile in Wilson's office. The prepaid cell phone was obtained and the number distributed to the trio of doctors that House trusted the most. The fact that Taub was listed amongst that group still amazed House, but the vertically challenged plastic surgeon had surprised him in a few ways, not the least of which being that he had kept his mouth shut about the earlier knife attack that Mancini had inflicted upon Issy. Although House would never admit it, he really appreciated the fact that Taub had not breathed a word of that. Chase had declared that Issy was fit for discharge, but that she needed to eat properly and get plenty of rest. She was not to exert herself in any way, no cooking or cleaning, just some easy walks around the apartment to build up her strength. Privately he told House about the conversation that he'd had with Issy and expressed his concern about her state of mind.

In a hesitant tone, he said: "You may want to consider some psychological counseling in the future. With all of her issues."

He let his voice trail off at that point. House gave him a curt nod. "I'll take that under advisement. Right now, I just want to get her home and make it through the next week. Her spirits may lift once she has that diploma in hand."

"I'm sure she'll feel better after graduation, but her issues are deeply ingrained. A diploma and a job aren't going to make them go away."

House closed his eyes and struggled to remain composed. Biting Chase's head off would not solve anything right now. "Point taken, but I just want to take it one step at a time right now. Let's reevaluate things in two weeks and see how she's doing."

Chase nodded, pleased that House didn't merely blow off his suggestion. It seemed reasonable to wait a bit and let this turmoil die down before making any radical changes right now.

The nurses were under the impression that Issy was just being transferred out of ICU to another room. Why it was happening so late at night and why she had changed out of a hospital gown into scrubs was not to be questioned. One stern look from House had sent them all scurrying back to their duties.

In the quiet of the late evening, Taub and Wilson loaded the back of Wilson's Volvo with all the medical supplies and the personal items from Issy's room. When everything was ready, Taub signaled House with a quick text on his new phone.

House's phone beeped. The message read: "Kickoff time."

He showed the screen to Issy: "Who would have thought that the dwarf would use sports metaphors?"

She gave him a wan smile, but did not reply. He knew that she was worried about leaving the room, afraid that reporters were lurking around every corner, ready to snap photos and invade her privacy even more.

In a soft voice, he said: "We'll be home soon. It will be OK."

Waving aside their offer to help, Issy climbed into the wheelchair by herself. Once she was settled, House placed a soft blanket in her lap. It was a warm June night and she wouldn't really need it, but he wanted her to have it handy just in case reporters were present and then she could pull it over her face.

Chase grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and pushed Issy towards the elevator. House walked by her side, his large hand holding her small one. They saw no one in the hall or in the elevator. Patients were asleep. The staff was otherwise preoccupied, busy doing their jobs or hidden in a quiet place catching forty winks themselves.

All was calm at the loading dock. Taub had done a quick sweep and there seemed to be no one lurking about. House settled Issy in the back seat and then got in the front with Wilson. They drove away quickly while Chase and Taub stowed the wheelchair in the hallway, and then dashed off to Taub's car to follow the others back to House's apartment.

With the light late night traffic, they caught up to them easily. All was quiet on Baker Street. They seemed to have managed to bring Issy home unnoticed by the press. While House and Wilson helped Issy inside the apartment building, Chase and Taub quickly unloaded the supplies from the back of Wilson's car and brought them inside.

Issy dropped heavily onto the couch with a sigh and looked around the room. It was good to be home. Then she sighed again. She really shouldn't think of the place as 'home' anymore. Even after Chase's pep talk, she had decided that she needed to do the right thing and leave House so that he could find a more suitable girlfriend, one that didn't come with so much baggage. She planned to stay with him for a short while and heal up a little bit. Hopefully, the college would be kind enough to still award her degree and then she'd be able to move anywhere and get a job. Two to three weeks max and she should be able to hit the road by then. She had not seen her car outside and wondered if it had been towed, and then she remembered. She had never driven home since the kidnapping. Her car was presumably still in the same parking spot and that meant that her car keys were still in her purse in her locker at PPTH. She would have to figure out a way to retrieve those necessary items before planning her escape. She knew one thing; there was no way that she could say 'good-bye' to Greg. She would have to cut and run while he was not home. It would be cowardly to do that, but she knew that if she tried to tell him face-to-face, those big blue eyes would melt her resolve and she wouldn't be able to do it.

After taking their personal items to the bedroom, House dropped onto the couch next to her. He wrapped his arm around her and kissed her cheek. "Good to be home, baby?"

She smiled at him: "Oh yes, it's great to be here. And the place looks so clean. Did someone tidy up while I was in the hospital?"

"Wilson had his housekeeper come over. She did some shopping too and made a casserole or something. I'm going to have her come over for a couple of weeks until you're feeling better."

Issy protested: "Oh, you don't have to do that. I'm sure that I'll be up to taking care of the place in just a few days."

House shook his head. "Absolutely not. You are going to rest. Period. There will be no cleaning, no cooking and, as much as I hate to say it, no cookie baking for a few weeks. You need time to heal up."

Chase said: "Issy, I told you all that before we left the hospital. No cleaning or other strenuous activity for at least a month. You've got to give your injuries time to heal."

Issy shrugged: "Yeah, but, what's a little dusting? That's nothing."

_I have to do something; otherwise I'm completely useless._

Chase went on: "It's not the dusting, that I'm concerned with. It's just that you won't stop there. Next thing, you'll be mopping and vacuuming and tearing out your stitches again."

Issy plucked at the hem of her scrub top. "Well, they will be coming out shortly. Then it won't be a problem, right?"

Taub sat down on the coffee table so that he was at her eye level. "Issy, I'm sure that you are eager to get back into your routine, but think of this as a healing vacation. Even after your stitches are out, you still need to rest and take it easy. Use this time to get caught up on some movies that you haven't had time to see or books that you haven't read."

House threw in his two cents. "You can try to improve your score on Grand Theft Auto, not that I won't _still_ be able to totally kick your ass, but maybe you can get to the point where it's not a _completely_ lopsided defeat."

Outnumbered and outvoted, Issy quickly conceded defeat for now. "I guess I could work my way through all those Fry and Laurie DVD's that you have. You said they were really funny. So when do I get my stitches out anyway?"

House gave Taub a pointed look, indicating that he was in charge of this part of her treatment. The plastic surgeon replied: "Monday should be fine. I can come over here and remove them. There's no need for you to go back to the hospital for that. It will be slightly uncomfortable but nothing that a Percocet won't take care of."

Issy nodded. "Speaking of Percocet, can I have one now? All this moving around made me kinda sore."

Chase said: "And that's why you're not do to anything strenuous. No cleaning, no laundry, no lifting of any kind. I want you to walk up and down the hallway several times a day to build up your strength and that's it. Taub and I will come over on Monday to check up on you and take out the stitches and you know House will snitch if you've done more than that."

Issy threw up her hands in defeat. "OK, OK. I get it. I'll lie around and watch movies all weekend. Now, can I have my Percocet?"

Wilson fetched a glass of juice from the kitchen and House produced the prescription bottle from his pocket. Once she had taken her medication, Chase said: "If you don't need anything else, Taub and I are going to take off. Call us if you need anything over the weekend; otherwise, we'll call on Monday before coming over."

House nodded: "Sounds good."

Issy said softly: "Thank you. Both for you. For everything."

They made their goodbyes and the two doctors left. Wilson wandered into the kitchen and poked his head into the refrigerator. "Laydee made a pot of Hungarian goulash. There's breakfast stuff, and sandwich fixings."

He closed the refrigerator door and checked out the freezer. "Hmm, frozen Mac and cheese and assorted TV dinners. Ben and Jerry's Chubby Hubby and Cherry Garcia. Popsicles."

Issy perked up: "Popsicles?"

Wilson hid his smirk behind the freezer door. House had told him how she adored Popsicles and to make sure that Laydee get two boxes of assorted flavors.

In a casual tone, Wilson replied: "Yeah, there's Popsicles. Want one?"

"Orange, please."

House growled: "Cherry for me."

Issy teased: "You always get cherry."

"It is the superior flavor. You eat orange."

He gave a faux shudder and she giggled. It was all he could do to keep a neutral expression on his face at that sound. No way did he want to get all girly and emotional in front of Wilson at his joy over such a simple thing as hearing his girl laugh again.

Wilson passed out the appropriate flavored pops and popped a grape flavored one into his mouth. House surprised him by tossing him the remote, but considering that he had a Popsicle in one hand and the other arm wrapped securely around Issy, it was merely a necessity as Wilson did have a free hand.

House happily chomped his Popsicle. This felt just right. Home with his girl at his side and his best friend on the opposite end of the couch watching some late night TV.

Wilson flipped the channels until he found a repeat of 'Friends'. House rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. It was the one where Rachel was flying across the Atlantic hoping to stop Ross's wedding to Emily. That British actor sitting next to Rachel on the plane was a funny guy; he was half of the Fry and Laurie team and House really enjoyed those shows. Too bad the guy wasn't a bigger success in the States. Issy seemed completely content to be curled into House's side and licking on her Popsicle. Fifteen minutes later, at the commercial break, Wilson glanced sideways and a smile spread across his face.

He whispered: "Look down."

A slow smile spread across House's face. Issy had fallen asleep, her right hand still clutching the half-eaten Popsicle. House slipped it out of her hand and popped it into his mouth. He grimaced at the flavor. Wilson chuckled: "The things you do for love."

House rolled his eyes. He took the pop out of his mouth and tossed it in the trash.

Tentatively Wilson said: "Want me to?"

House nodded; as much as he would have liked to carry her to the bedroom himself, it was beyond his capabilities.

Wilson gently picked her up and carried her to the bedroom. House pulled back the covers and Wilson laid her down on the right side of the bed.

"Need some help with?"

House let out a low growl. "I think I can undress her by myself. No need for you to stick around, trying to sneak a peek at the good stuff."

Wilson held up his hands in mock surrender. "Not trying to peek, just trying to be helpful. If you don't need me, I'll head home. Call me if you need anything and I'll check in with you tomorrow."

He turned to leave and was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Wilson glanced down at the hand and then up into House's face. His expression was carefully neutral, but Wilson could see a flash of some barely repressed emotion in his friend's eyes.

In a low voice, House mumbled: "Thanks."

There was a quick squeeze on Wilson's shoulder and then House's hand moved away.

Knowing that House would not appreciate any emotional sentiment, Wilson gave him a brisk nod. "Call you in the morning."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Fatigue hit House full force almost as soon as Wilson left. It had been more than a week since he had been able to stretch out in a bed and he was so looking forward to it. The fact that he would also be able to cuddle up next to his girl was the best part. He hadn't realized how much he missed the physical contact with her until it had been denied to him. But the drought was finally over and his girl was home again.

House quickly stripped down to his boxers and then started getting Issy ready for bed. She didn't awaken as he quietly pulled off her hospital issued scrubs and non-slip socks. Issy still needed to wear a bra 24/7 while her breasts were healing, but he wanted to feel as much of her skin as possible. The utilitarian hospital-issued bra and plain white panties could stay on for tonight, although tomorrow they could be exchanged for one of her exercise bras and a prettier pair of panties. Despite the functional underwear, the yellowing bruises and the stitches criss-crossing her body, he felt a strong wave of desire hit him as he stared down at her. It wasn't so much his own physical need, but a strong urge to take her in his arms and make love to her. He wanted to show her in the most physical sense just how much she meant to him and to reassure her that these new scars would have zero effect on his feelings for her. He chuckled softly to himself: _'five weeks to wait for_ _that.'_ In the meantime, kisses and gentle caresses would have to suffice.

After a trip to the bathroom to empty his bladder and to brush his teeth, House returned to the bedroom, stripped off his boxers and slipped between the sheets. The cool clean sheets felt wonderful against his skin and he allowed himself a moment of pleasure as he stretched fully in the comfort of their big bed. Then he rolled over onto his left side to face Issy. She was laying on her right side, facing House, mouth open slightly in sleep, her dark eyelashes fanned against her pale skin. With a bit of quiet encouragement, he managed to maneuver their bodies until her head was lying on his shoulder. He let out a contented sigh. Despite the annoying cast pressing into his torso, the feel of her mostly naked body pressed up against his was better than any drug. He felt the tension of the past few days slip away as he stroked her back with gentle fingers. Her breath tickled his neck and he smiled as his half-erect dick pressed involuntarily against her soft skin.

_Home._

The thought floated into his sleepy brain. The apartment that he had lived in for the last eight years somehow felt different now. Issy made it more than just a place to hang his hat; she had made it home. He planted a soft kiss on the top of her head and slipped off into a dreamless sleep, unaware of the fact that this would be the most relaxing moment that would occur all weekend.


	71. Chapter 71

**Chapter 71 **

_Monday June 9__th__, 2008_

It was a little after 6PM when Wilson arrived at 221 Baker Street. The huge mob of reporters that had been present all weekend had thinned, but there were still a few hold-outs hanging around, hoping for a photo opp. Wilson could hear the cameras clicking away as he approached the door, but he ignored their shouted questions and entered the a huge bag of Indian take-out from Mehek and a six-pack of Grolsch, Wilson used his foot to knock on the apartment door. To his surprise, his knock was quickly answered, but instead of being invited in, House came out into the foyer and closed the door behind him.

Puzzled by the unusual turn of events, Wilson asked: "Are we eating in the hallway tonight?"

After a pause, House replied: "Chase and Taub are still removing her stitches. She won't let me in the room while they are working. She doesn't want me to see her chest, thinks I'll be repulsed by the sight. I can't seem to convince her that a few little scars don't matter to me."

Wilson took careful note of the dark expression on his best friend's face. "I take it she's still depressed?"

_The weekend had been a disaster. By Saturday morning, the horrible story had become national news. Somehow it had leaked out that Issy had been discharged from PPTH and the reporters surrounded the apartment. News trucks had clogged traffic and the police had to come to move them along. House had been forced to keep all the drapes closed to prevent the photographers from snapping photos through the living room windows. The story was headline news on practically every channel. Even the Weather Channel had done a sound bite about Issy. House ended up restricting TV watching to Animal Planet, Cartoonland and Nickelodeon so that Issy would not have to see her stripper photo plastered across the TV set._

_But the worst part of the weekend had been the phone call from John House._

_House had been making breakfast on Saturday morning when the landline rang. Cursing himself that he had forgotten to pull the phone plug and fearing reporters, he had told her to just let the machine pick up the call. The ringing had finally stopped and his announcement had played. "Don't bother leaving a message; I never call back." _

_Just as House was plating up the eggs and toast, an evil laugh had come through the machine._

"_A _hooker_? She's _a hooker_? Just how _desperate_ are you son, that you pass off a hooker as your girlfriend to your parents and to your friends? Are you so pathetic and crippled that you can't get a woman any other way?"_

_Issy had let out a little scream and immediately clapped her hands over her mouth. Her face had gone pale and her eyes widened with shock. John House's tirade had gone on and on in the same vein, until House had managed to snatch up the phone. _

_He had shouted at his father: "Don't call her that! That story is a bunch of lies concocted by some sleazeball reporter. Not that you care anything about hearing our side of the story. You want to believe the worst anyway."_

_Before his father could say another word, House had hung up, thrown the phone across the room and had yanked the cord out of the answering machine. Then he had pulled out his cell phone and turned it off. Now the only functioning phone would be the 'Bat phone' and only three people had that number. But the damage had been done. Issy sobbed for a good ten minutes after that call. He tried every platitude that he could think of but nothing calmed her down. When she had finally cried herself out, she laid like a limp rag doll in House's arms. Nothing that he said or did could revive her spirits. He had finally managed to cajole her into eating a piece of toast, but after that, she just laid on the couch with her old stuffed dog clutched to her chest and stared at Nickelodeon. Even a visit from Wilson bringing Chinese food couldn't shake her despair._

_Sunday had pretty much gone the same way. Wilson came over early and made his famous macadamia nut pancakes, but Issy only picked at the delicacy. She seemed to no longer be embarrassed about hugging her old stuffed dog in front of Wilson, indeed she wouldn't put the dog down, even to eat and that too had worried House. He tried to comfort her with hugs and kisses, but she just lay woodenly in his arms and barely returned the affection. _

House tapped his cane against the floor and said: "I'd say she's moved beyond depressed to despondent. She's either staring blankly at the boob tube, apologizing for being so 'useless' or thanking me for taking care of her through all of this and as soon as she feels better, she'll leave so that I can find someone else. She keeps trying to."

He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. Finally he gritted his teeth and hissed: "She keeps trying to 'pleasure' me as if she owes me that."

Wilson stared at him blankly. "But she's supposed to wait six weeks?"

"I know that! She keeps trying _other_ ways to do it. I wake up with her hand or her mouth on me and Mt. Gregory can't help responding."

"Whoa, whoa! Too much info. I get the picture. Haven't you told her?"

House interrupted: "Of course I've told her! I'm not a hormonally driven teenager with a constant hard-on. Between my age and the Vicodin, I'm thrilled to have morning wood. "

He sighed and scrubbed his hand over his face in frustration. "I've told her that I want to wait until she feels better. That I want to _make love_ to her, not just get my rocks off. And you know how she interprets that? She thinks that I'm just waiting until she can have _intercourse,_ and why should I wait? Why don't I just call a hooker? She claims to understand that I _need _that and she'll be happy to amscray while the girl is here."

Wilson sighed: "Oh, Jesus. This is worse than I thought."

"No shit, Sherlock. I've told her that the scars and the gossip don't matter to me, that I love her and want her to stay. I hold her and comfort her when she cries. I make food for her. Any other ideas? I'm open to suggestions."

Wilson had never seen his friend reach out for help in this manner. House truly was desperate. Wilson thought for a moment and then said: "Dreams, hopes, aspirations. It all comes down to that. What is it you told me in the office the day Issy was kidnapped? What were the things she wanted?"

House ticked the items off on his fingers. "A normal job, a little house and a dog. No marriage, no kids cuz she's a _whore_ and doesn't deserve those things. Not that she can have kids now anyway, thanks to that bastard."

Wilson noted the bitterness in that last comment and filed that away for later thought. He pondered for a moment and then said cautiously: "Getting her a dog might be just the thing to show how you feel about her. It tells her that you acknowledge her dreams and want her to have those things."

"I did think about that. I really did. The problem is that this is a small apartment and she really wants a big dog, a Lab, in fact. We'll be tripping over the damn thing in such a small space. The bigger problem is that right now she is not well enough to care for the dog; he'll need to be walked and exercised and Issy is not up for that right now, not to mention the damn reporters are still hovering outside. I'm afraid that getting her a dog _now_ would only make her feel more inadequate. Her mind will put a bad spin on it, as in, not only can she _not_ take care of _me_, she can't take care of the dog that I got her. I do want to get her a dog, but not right now. I need something else."

"Cuddy said she was holding a job for her. It will be there when she's ready to go back to work. And from the last we spoke to her advisor, graduation seems like a lock."

House nodded: "Yeah, that leaves just one other thing."

The two men exchanged looks and Wilson raised an eyebrow in question. "I think that would show her that you're serious. But are you ready for that?"

House pondered for a moment and then nodded. "Gimme your phone. Is your second ex-wife still the worst realtor in New Jersey?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Bonnie took down all of House's requirements and promised to get back to him quickly. Since the economy was still on a downturn, real estate was a buyer's market and she felt certain that she could find just what he wanted at a decent price. House instructed her to email him with the most promising ones and he would decide if they were worth a visit. Once he had decided on three or four decent prospects, she'd set up an appointment for him to see them all in one afternoon. Once those details were taken care of, House ended the call and the two men finally walked into the apartment.

While Wilson took the food and beer into the kitchen, House started down the hallway, but the bedroom door opened before he got there. Chase and Taub exited the room, pulling the door closed behind them.

House asked: "Well?"

Taub replied: "Stitches are all out. If I say so myself, considering that I had to operate at warp speed, I did a damn good job."

House growled: "I'll be the judge of that. How did Issy take it?"

Chase answered: "Not as well as we'd hoped. She still feels rather ugly and doesn't want you to see her."

Taub continued: "Most of the scars will fade to thin lines, but the one that ripped open is larger and more noticeable. It had been the largest cut to begin with. I'd wanted to take her back to the O.R. to restitch that one, but she had refused. Mederma will help to fade it but she may want to consider a return to the O.R. in the future for a little touch-up."

House thumped his cane on the floor. "We'll see what she thinks about it in six months or so. Thanks for coming over."

Chase gave him a nod. "Call us if you need anything."

The two doctors headed down the hallway, and after saying good-bye to Wilson, exited the apartment.

House rapped on the bedroom door. "Wilson's brought Mehek for dinner. I can smell the garlic naan from here. You ready to eat?"

Her soft voice replied: "Hmm, just a minute."

Issy had dumped out most of her entire lingerie drawer onto the bed and tried on several bras, but none of them hid all of the scars completely. Her exercise bra provided the best coverage but the largest scar still peeked out over the top of that one. The pretty lacy bras were a complete disaster; several of the scars could be seen while she was wearing those low-cut ones. House's favorite, the black lace one, revealed almost all of the largest scar and three of the smaller ones. There was no way that she'd be able to wear that again.

Just as she was about to remove it, the bedroom door opened and House slipped into the room. He took note of the bra explosion all over the bed and glanced over at Issy standing in front of the mirror with a sad look on her face. She let out a small gasp when she saw him and covered her breasts with her hands.

House quickly limped over to her. "Oooo, my favorite bra. I've been waiting to see the girls in that one again."

He gently pulled her hands away, bent down and placed a gentle kiss first on the left breast and then on the right. He murmured: "Patty. Selma. I've missed you. Did you girls miss me?"

He thumbed her nipples through the bra until they were standing erect and then he smiled. "I think they missed me."

Issy felt the tears pool in her eyes. "Yes, they missed you but they are not the same pretty girls that you used to know."

House slipped the straps off of her shoulders and pulled down the bra cups, completely exposing her breasts. Taub had done a decent job. Most of the scars were thin lines and would fade with the Mederma. Even the biggest one would fade over time and in his opinion would not need a touch-up, unless of course, Issy wanted it.

A tear slipped down Issy's cheek and he hastened to kiss it away. "You look beautiful, sweetheart. Patty and Selma look great. You need just one thing."

He planted a quick kiss on each nipple and then reached into the dresser drawer for the Tiffany box. "You haven't had a chance to wear this yet."

House adjusted the bra until it was back in place and then had Issy lift her hair so that he could put the necklace around her neck. The heart pendant looked perfect nestled between her breasts.

Standing behind her with his arms wrapped around her waist, House smiled over her shoulder at their reflection in the mirror. "Beautiful, just beautiful. You gotta show off that necklace to Wilson. Put on that black V-neck top of yours. It has the perfect neckline."

Issy did as he requested and pulled on that particular top. She had to admit that the neckline showed off the pendant perfectly. Unfortunately one small bit of scar could be seen too, but since she was only wearing the shirt in the apartment, she figured that she could handle it. And she had to admit that she liked the way that Greg's face lit up when he saw the finished ensemble.

He gave her cheek a sloppy kiss. "You look beautiful. C'mon, I'm going to show you off to Wilson and then we'll eat. I hope he remembered to get me the lamb Vindaloo."

As expected, Wilson excessively complimented her appearance until she blushed. "Enough already. Obviously Greg has good taste in jewelry. Let's just eat."

Wilson smirked: "He doesn't only have good taste in jewelry, he has good taste in women."

House sputtered around a mouthful of samosa: "Hey, she's my girl. Find your own."

Wilson dipped a piece of naan in the chutney and said: "With three marriages under my belt, I think I'm capable of doing that."

House jeered: "Yeah, but you always find the needy type and then it doesn't last. What you need."

Wilson interrupted: "Like you know what I need? I'm perfectly capable of finding my own dates, thank you very much."

The two friends continued to spar with each other as they ate but Issy was only half listening as she attempted to eat some of the food. She felt so conflicted. She loved Greg and wanted to be with him but kept thinking he would be better off without her. But here he was, 'claiming' her in front of Wilson and acting so sweet and loving. Did he really mean all the nice things that he said or was he just trying to make her feel better? Did he really not care about the scars and the gossip? As much as she wanted to believe his words, she found it impossible to grasp the concept that he loved her enough to overlook those issues and want a relationship with her. Graduation was only a few days away; she'd see how he was after that and then decide what to do.

As House traded barbs with Wilson, he kept one eye on Issy. She seemed to be eating a little bit more tonight and her mood seemed a touch better. At least she wasn't carrying the stuffed dog with her right now. He hoped that indicated an improvement in her spirits. He forked up a bite of his lamb curry, offered it to her and felt a wave of pleasure when she ate it off of his fork. He would continue to shower her with love and affection while they waited for graduation and for Bonnie to find them a home. Hopefully the two events would help to convince her that he was serious about continuing their relationship. If not, he would have to think of some other way.


	72. Chapter 72

**Chapter 72**

_Tuesday June 10__th__, 2008_

Just before noon, Wilson hung up the phone with a smile on his face. That call had been from Issy's advisor, Ms. Lawson, informing him when Issy's cap and gown could be picked up. Despite all the publicity, there seemed to be no issues with Issy's graduating on schedule this weekend. Hopefully that would put a smile on her face when he told her the news. She had been so sad all weekend and House was no longer able to hide his concern behind his usual façade. Worry was written all over his face. He had even fallen so low as to ask Wilson what to do about her. As the two men had pondered her dreams, hopes and aspirations, House had come up with the brilliant idea of looking for a house for the two of them. His ex-wife Bonnie was currently on the hunt for the perfect place. Hopefully achieving her goals of graduating from nursing school and getting a house would revive her spirits. Now if Brad and Angelina would just break up, or Mel Gibson have another break-down, so that the reporters would have something else to do and leave her alone, things would be great.

By the end of last night, Issy's spirits had seemed to be a little bit better. At least she wasn't carrying her stuffed dog around with her and had laughed a bit at the barbs that House had thrown at him. Wilson didn't enjoy being the butt of House's jokes, but at least it had a purpose last night. Getting Issy to relax and laugh a little had been worth House's poking fun at his ineptness in making a relationship last.

Just as he was refocusing his mind on the chart in front of him, there was a knock at the door. Thinking it was one of House's team or Cuddy, he called out: "Come in."

The doe-eyed button-nose brunette who walked in was not anyone he expected to see. She looked vaguely familiar, but it was probably because she was wearing the bright blue scrubs that all the nursing students wore. She was very attractive with full pouty lips and he found himself wondering what just how soft those lips were.

Finally his brain was able to engage his tongue in speaking: "Hi, can I help you?"

The pouty lips turned up at the corners. "Dr. Wilson, right?"

He tried to keep his eyes on her face and not on the fact that her scrub top was stretched tightly across an ample chest. "That's what it says on my driver's license."

Her eyes twinkled at him. "And on your door."

His smile grew broader: "Guilty as charged. And you are?"

The woman stepped into the office and closed the door behind her. "I'm Natalie Walsh. I'm a classmate of Issy's. I went up to ICU to see her, but she's already been discharged."

"Yes, she's feeling better and is able to recuperate at home now."

"I'm glad. I have some review notes for her and I wanted to give them to her, but she's not answering her cell phone and that's the only number that I have for her."

Hesitantly, Wilson said: "Yeah, she is probably avoiding phone calls right now."

"Because of all the publicity, right?"

Wilson gave her a grim nod.

Natalie went on: "She lives with Dr. House, right? I heard that he was her boyfriend. Would you give me the number or the address so that I could call her or go see her?"

"I don't think that would be a very good idea. How about you give me the notes and I'll take them to her and tell her that they are from you?"

"If it's all the same to you, I'd rather do it myself. I'd like to see her, as I have a feeling that she could use a friend right now. The twins and their gang have been doing nothing but talking trash about her, and I'm really sick of it. Those bitches have picked on her for the whole two years that we have been in classes together. She's a good person and doesn't deserve all of this crap."

Wilson thought he remembered Issy mentioning Natalie's name once, but he couldn't quite make the connection. "Are you a friend of Issy's?"

Natalie plopped down on Wilson's sofa. "We started out as friends, but then she pulled back. Got really shy and stayed away from everyone, even me. I had my suspicions as to why she did that, but it wasn't until the newspaper article came out that I knew I was right."

She paused for a moment and then went on: "She was afraid of someone finding out how she supported herself and getting thrown out of school because of the morals clause."

Wilson sputtered: "No, no, that's not it. The newspaper article was a lie. That picture was photoshopped."

Natalie cocked her head and stared at Wilson for a long time. Finally he blinked and she smiled. "Yeah, right. That's the story you and Dr. House are spinning for everyone else, to protect Issy. I get it."

"No, no, really. It's a total fake. We just haven't figured out who concocted the story and fed it to the papers."

"You don't have to pretend with me, Dr. Wilson. I know."

Wilson was getting more and more flustered by the moment. House had always told him that he had a bad poker face; Natalie seems to be reading him like a book. She seemed very sure of herself and certain that she knew the truth about Issy.

He tried for indignant: "You know _what_, exactly?"

"I know that Issy was a dancer."

He replied in a sarcastic tone: "Oh, yeah. You got photos, too?"

Natalie leaned against the back of the couch and smirked. "No, I don't _have _photos, but I've _seen_ them."

Wilson's mouth fell open and he made a sound like a dying fish.

The young woman went on: "I wish that Issy had not been afraid to be my friend. After all, I was dealing with the same thing and we could have helped each other cope."

Wilson sputtered: "Wha-what do you mean? Dealing with the same thing?"

She gave him a wry smile. "Promise you won't tell?"

He nodded and crossed his chest with one finger.

She shook her head and giggled at his childish action. "We were doing the same thing to support ourselves. I work at the King of Diamonds. Issy used to work there before going over to Body Shots. There are a couple of pictures of her up in the back room. I knew who she was the first time I saw her. She's probably forgotten that those photos are still there."

"You, you, you're a?"

"Dancer. Well, soon to be ex-dancer. As soon as I can graduate and get my nursing license and a job, I'll be tossing my pasties in the nearest trashcan."

Suddenly Wilson's mind flooded with an image of Natalie in nothing but pasties and a G-string. It was hot and reminded him once again just how long it had been since he had been with a woman.

Natalie mistook Wilson's silence for disapproval.

"Does that shock you, Dr. Wilson? It's not easy for a girl to make enough money to support herself through college with no family to fall back on. Dancing isn't ideal, but the hours are flexible and the tips are good. I just consider it a means to an end, and I bet Issy did too."

"No, no, I'm not shocked, just surprised, that's all. Surprised that you and Issy didn't become better friends since you were both doing the same thing."

Natalie smirked: "I knew who she was, but she didn't know that we shared more than classes together. There's no secret handshake for dancers."

Wilson answered thoughtfully: "I suppose not. You said you don't have any family?"

Her face tightened: "No more than Issy does."

It took a moment for the meaning behind those words to sink in. "You heard about? You know? You?"

His voice fell to a whisper: "You too?"

The young woman shifted in her seat and then went on. "Yeah, only in my case, it was biological, not step. My mother died when I was fourteen, and apparently dear old dad needed a quick and easy replacement. And I can see the sympathy just oozing out of your orifices. Can it! I don't need your sympathy. I dealt with it for a while, and then I told one of my teachers, ended up in foster care and away from that pervert. Of course, at eighteen, you are tossed out of the foster care system with no job and no means of support. Why do you think I started dancing? It wasn't cuz I liked the costumes. I knew I wanted to be a nurse; I just had to come up with the money for school. Dancing was the quickest way to do it."

Wilson stared at the young woman, who seemed far more mature than her years. "I'm impressed. "

Natalie shrugged: "Don't be. I did what I had to do to survive, just like Issy did. Now, do you see why I think Issy needs a friend like me? Are you going to give me the phone number so that I can call her?"

Wilson thought for a moment, and then slowly smiled: "No, I have a better idea."

He pulled out his cell and dialed the number for the 'Bat phone'.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Bonnie hadn't wasted any time. By the time that House checked his e-mail on Tuesday morning, he already had an email from her, containing eight links of potential homes for him to look at. He scrutinized each one carefully, and rejected five of them immediately. How could Bonnie _not_ remember that he wanted a ranch style home? Was she really that much of an idiot? A two-story house was not in the cards for him. Ranches were not that common in Princeton but there were _some_ available. He emailed her back, indicating the three that he liked and reminding her of his criteria. Then he started his own real estate search. It was simple enough to search the local realtor's listings and he quickly became consumed with the activity.

Issy strolled into the kitchen for a drink. Greg had been on his laptop for a while now and she wondered what he was doing. She poured herself a glass of juice and then took the beverage into the living room with her. As she walked behind the couch and tried to get a peek at his screen, he closed the lid.

"How you feeling, sweetheart? Want me to make you some lunch?"

Disappointed that she had not been able to see the screen, she walked around the couch and sat down next to him. "No, I'm not really hungry. If you want to know, I'm kinda bored. What are you doing?"

House fished for a quick lie. "Cuddy wants me to give a lecture at a medical conference in the next year. It's part of my contract. I'm trying to find one in a cool place to vacation, like Hawaii. Would you like to take a trip to somewhere like that?"

Issy's eyes widened. "That would be awesome. I've never been to a beach, much less an island."

House was stunned. "You've never been to the beach? Not even here in Jersey?"

She shook her head. "Never really had time."

"You've never even seen the ocean?"

Issy shook her head, feeling ashamed at her limited life experiences. She was sure that Greg must be rethinking their whole 'relationship' again. He was a well-traveled man and would surely desire a woman who'd had similar experiences to his.

To her surprise, he reached out and took her hand. "Well, we'll have to fix that. Once that cast is off, we're gonna hit the beach. Jersey beaches may not be as great as Hawaii's but they will do for a start."

She gave him a smile, all the time knowing that she most likely would not be around that long. "Sounds great."

House tilted his head in though. "You know, Point Pleasant Beach has a great boardwalk. We could take a little ride down there; you could at least see the ocean and we could have some fun on the boardwalk. Play some silly games, eat some cotton candy."

He squeezed her hand. "It'd be a nice ride on the motorcycle. We could do that next week, when you are feeling a little stronger. What do you think?"

Her heart ached. The nicer he was to her, the harder it was becoming to contemplate leaving him. She wanted this dream of being his girlfriend; it was a very pleasant fantasy. Tears pooled in her eyes and she leaned forward to hug his neck so that he couldn't see them.

"It sounds great, really great. I'd love to go there. Maybe we could go this week. I feel pretty good and riding on the bike wouldn't be really strenuous."

_And I'd love one more ride on the motorcycle with you before I leave._

He wrapped his long arms around her and held her close. "I think we better wait. I want you to feel a little stronger and the other thing is, I think, if we wait a little longer, we have a better chance of the reporters finding somewhere else to be instead of hanging around here. I don't want them following us to the beach."

Issy was disappointed, but understood his point. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. I guess I'm not used to just hanging around and doing nothing. I wanna cook or clean or something. Can I look at those medical conference sites with you?"

The last thing House wanted was for Issy to see what page was up on his laptop. "It would just bore you. Hey, why don't you grab your laptop and check out the Jersey shore? You can see what Point Pleasant looks like and look at some of the other ones too. I think Seaside Heights has a boardwalk too."

Whatever was on his laptop, he didn't want her to see it. He wasn't looking at medical conferences, but she wondered what it could be that he didn't want her to see. Was he looking at potential dates on ? Was he trying to find her an apartment so that he could move her out? Was he looking at some perfect breasts on a porn site? The possibilities flooded her brain and made her feel even sadder. Well, two could play that game. She would take his suggestion and get her laptop, but she wouldn't be looking at Jersey beaches. She would start looking for a job away from Princeton. Atlanta was still a strong contender, or maybe she could find a place on the coast, like Savannah or Charleston. The idea of being able to run on the beach with her dog, when she got one, was very appealing.

She stood up: "Good idea. I'll go get my laptop and look at the beaches."

He smiled at her: "Excellent."

As Issy turned to walk towards the bedroom, the 'Bat phone' rang. It was on the kitchen island. She scooped it up and tossed it to House and then continued on to the bedroom to retrieve her laptop.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

When House answered, Wilson said: "Hey, what are you doing?"

He glanced down the hallway before answering to make sure Issy was out of earshot. "Looking at real estate sites and trying to keep Issy from going stir-crazy. Apparently she is feeling well enough that she wants to do something besides watch TV. I may have to let her bake cookies just to give her something to do."

"Making cookies isn't too physical if you help her take the pans in and out of the oven."

"I'm not sure that stirring the dough is such a good idea either, but I gotta come up with something. Issy is not used to sitting around doing nothing."

Wilson could hear the desperation in his voice. "Hey, I have an idea for tonight. How about I come over and bring pizza and a friend?"

There was a brief pause and then House said: "I'm intrigued. Go on."

"A classmate of Issy's came to see me and let's just say that they have a lot in common."

"A lot as in 'cup size' or as in 'similar former occupations'?"

Not wanting to betray too much of what Natalie had told him without her express permission, he replied cautiously: "Both and a bit more."

"Interesting. My spidey sense is telling me that you have found a new needy chick to take care of."

Wilson chuckled as he looked at the confident young woman sitting on his couch. "Definitely not. You'll see when you meet her. I have the arrangements for picking up the cap and gown. How about if I use that as an excuse for us to come and visit? We can say that Natalie picked them up for Issy and wanted to drop them by personally. 7:00, OK?"

"Make it 6:30. I can't wait to meet your new friend."

Wilson smirked and closed his phone. Natalie shot him a questioning look. He gave her his most charming smile: "How would you like to have pizza with us tonight?"

She smiled back: "Leave off the anchovies and it's a date."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Natalie agreed to pick up Issy's cap and gown along with her own set that afternoon. Then she would rendezvous with Wilson at his office at 6PM. This would give him time to make all his rounds, finish his paperwork and order the pizza. He gave her a quick run-down on Issy's emotional state since the news had broken.

"This whole thing really sucks. I'd really like to find out who leaked this story and give him a kick in the balls."

Wilson winced at the statement, but agreed with her sentiment. "You're not the only one who'd like to do something to the guy. He's made Issy's life a living hell."

Natalie shook her head. "She doesn't deserve this. She saved those kids from their pervert dad and got herself injured in the process. It's just not fair. I really appreciate you taking me over to visit her, Dr. Wilson. I just wanna help her if I can."

"What are you going to say to her?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I just want her to know that I'm here for her, that I'm her friend and that I understand what she's going through. I just don't know if that's enough."

"Seems like a damn good start."


	73. Chapter 73

**Chapter 73**

Issy spent the rest of the day lounging on the bed and surfing on her laptop. She quickly looked at Jersey Shore beaches and left that window open in case Greg wandered in and asked her about them, but she opened a second window and that's where she spent most of her time. Her vision of running on the beach with a dog at her side was becoming more and more appealing so she centered her search on larger coastal cities south of Virginia. Charleston and Savannah both looked appealing, but Jacksonville seemed to be the best of the lot. It was the biggest city in Florida, but not overrun with tourism the way that Orlando was with the whole Disney conglomerate. The city had plenty of hospitals and was situated very close to the beach. Issy went so far as to look at a map of the area and decided that she would definitely want to live on the east side of town to be able to get to the beaches easily without having to drive through city traffic to do so. The climate seemed great; she'd be able to run 365 days of the year without having to worry about slipping on an icy patch. The hospital websites had job postings for nurses in all specialties and many of them offered enticing sign-on bonuses. Issy even went so far as to look at real estate and was amazed at the home prices. They were so much cheaper than homes in New Jersey. Based on the salary offers on the hospital websites, she felt fairly confident that she would be able to soon afford a home in the Jacksonville suburbs. Hopefully she could start a new life down there, anonymously, away from all the painful reminders of her past. It would be so hard to leave Greg, but it had to be done. A completely different environment seemed the ticket to making the transition easier.

There was a knock at the door. Most likely it was just Wilson coming over for dinner, so she ignored it and continued surfing. A moment later, House bellowed: "Issy! We got company. Come on out."

She frowned as she closed the screens. Greg wouldn't call Wilson 'company', so it must be someone else. After checking her appearance in the mirror, she headed down the hallway, wondering all the while who had come to visit.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The smell of the pizza was enticing, but House's attention was on the young woman standing next to Wilson. She was a hottie, no doubt about that. The plum colored scoop-neck blouse enhanced an already impressive rack and her faded jeans hugged her curves nicely. If Wilson's hints had been correct and she really was a dancer, House bet that she got very good tips. The right side of House's mouth curved up into a smile; he had no doubt that Wilson would be bedding this young woman by the weekend.

As if Wilson could read his mind, the younger man gave House a jab in the shoulder. "Don't be such an ass. How about inviting us in?"

He shot his friend a smirk and said: "Aren't you going to introduce us first?"

Wilson rolled his eyes and made the introductions. "Natalie, this is the infamous Dr. Greg House. House, this is Natalie Walsh, one of Issy's classmates."

Natalie shifted the twelve-pack of Grolsch and a shopping bag into her right hand and stuck out her left. "Dr. House, it's nice to finally meet you. I've heard so much about you but believe only about a third of it."

To Wilson's surprise, House stuck out his left hand and shook hers. "A fifth would be more like it. You brought beer; I like you already. Drop the doctor bit. Just call me House. Issy's been holed up in the bedroom all afternoon. Let's see if we can pry her out."

He turned and walked back into the apartment, leaving them to follow behind.

"Issy! We got company. Come on out."

Wilson wandered to the kitchen to set the pizzas down on the island and Natalie followed him. He took the beer from her and set it in the refrigerator. She hung onto the shopping bag.

When Issy rounded the corner and saw Natalie, she stopped dead and her jaw dropped. "What are you doing here?"

Natalie smirked: "It's nice to see you too. I went to see Dr. Wilson today and told him that I had a few things for you. He offered to bring them over, but I insisted on coming along."

She held out the shopping bag: "I brought you your cap and gown for graduation on Saturday. I also brought you some review notes."

A stunned expression on her face, Issy slowly took the bag from Natalie. "Well, thank you so much. You didn't have to do that. Wilson could have."

Natalie interrupted: "I know that Dr. Wilson could have, but I wanted to see you."

Issy stared at the girl for a few seconds and then blurted out: "Why?"

"Why not? Friends visit their friends when they aren't feeling well."

Issy looked away. "I wasn't really very friendly to you."

Natalie guided her over to the couch and they sat down. Wilson and House hung out in the kitchen, eavesdropping but giving them the essence of privacy.

"You were in the beginning, but then you pulled back. I didn't know why back then, but I do now."

Issy frowned: "You do?"

Natalie shrugged: "Well, I think I do. You were just afraid that people would find out what you did to support yourself. I can't blame you for that. It worried me too. After all the time and money, who wanted to get tossed out because of a stupid morals clause?"

Issy sputtered: "W-what do you m-mean, it w-worried you too?"

"I should have told you a long time ago, but I work at the King of Diamonds."

_House muttered under his breath: "So, similar cup size and similar jobs. I was right"._

_Wilson scowled at him._

Issy's eyes widened: "You do? Really? I used to work there, before I went to Body Shots."

Natalie nodded: "I'd seen your picture in the backroom so when I met you at school, I knew who you were. I heard from the girls at the club that you had moved on to Body Shots. When you stopped being friendly, I figured it was because you were afraid that people would find out about the job, so I didn't push it with you. You already had the twins picking on you; I figured you had enough on your plate."

Natalie's tone grew bitter: "I heard what happened outside of ICU on Friday. Those girls are such bitches. They bragged to everyone in class how they made you faint. They don't know how lucky they are, growing up with _money_ and a daddy who gives them _everything_. Mine gave me nothing but, well, the same trouble your stepfather gave you."

Issy felt the small hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "Wh-what did you say?"

Natalie's confident attitude sagged just a bit. "I heard what happened with your stepfather. My own father did that to me too. My mother died and he needed a quick replacement. I was fourteen, grieving over the loss of my mom and didn't know what to do. My grades dropped and my history teacher pulled me aside to ask me what was going on. I spilled it all to her. She reported him and got me in foster care. Then, after high school, I started dancing to earn money for nursing school."

_House muttered: "Did she tell you that too?"_

_Wilson just nodded._

Issy's hands flew to her mouth. "Ohmigod! I can't believe it! It happened to you too."

Natalie smirked: "We're sisters, in a weird, sicko kinda way. Statistics says that 25% of girls are molested before they reach age eighteen. So I'm sure we aren't the only ones in our class who have been abused. It's just your past has become public knowledge. Maybe I was a bit pushy, badgering Dr. Wilson into bringing me over here, but I thought, well, I kinda understand what you're going through and I thought you could use a friend. So here I am."

Issy smiled at her. "I'm glad you did. You know, it's funny. I always felt bad about pushing you away and wanted to make it up to you. I was actually thinking about fixing you up with Wilson. I thought you two might hit it off."

Natalie glanced over at the kitchen, at the two men who were doing their best to pretend to not be listening to the conversation that was taking place in the living room. She stage-whispered: "Really? You were? He is kinda cute. So what's stopping you?"

Issy peeked over her shoulder: "You don't think they heard our conversation from over there, do you?"

Natalie shrugged: "It doesn't matter. I told Dr. Wilson all of this in his office earlier today."

Issy's jaw dropped: "You told him all of this? But why would you do that?"

"I really wanted to see you and he wouldn't give me your number or tell me where you were. I had to convince him that I understood what you were going through, so I told him all of that. What's the big deal?"

"Well, I don't know now. I mean, he knows all about your background and stuff. I don't know if he'd want to go out with you."

Natalie's tone grew frosty. "Are you saying that he wouldn't go out with me because I'm a dancer or because I was abused? Is he that _shallow_? Well, it's his loss if he won't."

_House muttered under his breath: "You're going to ask her out, aren't you?"_

_Wilson replied: "Well, I have to now, to prove Issy wrong."_

_House replied: "I don't get that needy vibe from her. You won't get past the third date."_

_Wilson chuckled: "We'll see."_

"_Hundred bucks?"_

"_You're on."_

House almost smiled. It was about time his best friend had a new playmate. Maybe this one would turn out to be a keeper. He had gotten lucky with Issy. Now it was Wilson's turn.

He called out: "Are you ready for pizza or do you babes want to gab a while longer?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

It didn't take long for the group to polish off most of the pizza. House was pleased that Issy managed to eat two whole pieces, the most she had eaten since her return home. He spent most of the meal watching the others interact. Natalie gave him a good vibe, the kind that told him that he wouldn't mind the girl hanging out with his best friend. And if she happened to turn into Issy's best friend too, that would be even better.

The talk turned to graduation. Natalie asked: "So do you know what you're going to wear under your gown?"

Issy shrugged: "I guess I'll wear my plum dress. I don't know; I'm still not sure that I want to go."

Natalie slammed the beer bottle down so hard on the coffee table that House was sure that it had broken. Her voice went up half an octave. "_Not go?_ How can you say that? After all the work we did? We _deserve _that little moment of glory. Oh, you _are _going, sister. Your name is right before mine alphabetically and I'll push you onto the stage if I have to."

She pointed her index finger straight at Issy. "Plus, you will _not _give the twins the satisfaction of not showing up. They're taking bets that you won't show your face."

A smile crept slowly across House's face. "Really? Can you get a piece of that action? What're the odds?"

Natalie defiantly tossed her hair behind her shoulder and looked him square in the eyes. "Fifty to one that she won't show."

House whistled: "Sweet. We could make some money here. I'll give you 500 bucks to bet for me."

Issy's eyes widened: "Greg, what are you doing?"

"Stealing some of their money, baby. I give Natalie 500 bucks to bet for me and once you walk across that stage, I'll pluck 25 grand from those evil bitches."

Natalie piped in: "Minus my commission, of course."

House chuckled at her boldness. "Of course. And what would your commission be?"

Not wanting to look too greedy, she hemmed and finally said: "Ten percent."

He gave her an indulgent smile. "Babe, you need to learn to start your negotiations on the _high_ side, not the low side. You should have started with fifty, I would have countered with ten and we would have settled on twenty-five."

"Oh."

"Which is what I'll give you anyway for placing the bet for me."

Natalie's jaw dropped. "Really? You're serious?"

"Yep. I can't do this without you. I'd give you a bigger stake, but that might make them suspicious, so we'll stick with 500."

Natalie raised her beer bottle in salute. "Deal."

Then she turned to Issy. "I like him."

Issy smiled at her. "I do too."

Her smile faded. "You're lucky. At least you'll have your boyfriend in the audience cheering for you when you get your diploma. I got six tickets and no one to use them."

Wilson piped up: "I'll be there. Issy's giving me one of her tickets. House and I will cheer when you cross the stage, won't we, House?"

House narrowed his eyes. "You got six tickets? Bring 'em on. We'll pack the house."

Wilson frowned: "With who?"

"My team, who else?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

By the end of the evening, it was decided that Natalie would give all of her tickets to Wilson who would distribute them to House's team. Foreman, Kutner, Thirteen, Taub and his wife would help them fill the row. Issy wrote down the combination to her locker and gave that to Natalie who agreed to retrieve her purse. Issy's tickets were inside; two of those would go to Chase and Cameron and two to House and Wilson.

Wilson said: "There's still three left."

House shrugged: "Give one to Cuddy and then see if Robin and Sophia want to come."

Natalie smiled: "We're going to have our own cheering squad. Not bad for two orphans, huh?"

Issy smiled but couldn't manage to push away her trepidation about attending graduation. She just hoped that the reporters wouldn't turn it into a total circus or that the twins wouldn't do something to embarrass her. Greg was really looking forward to stealing the money from the twins and she couldn't let him down. She had to attend the ceremony now. All she could do was hope that things would go well.


	74. Chapter 74

**Chapter 74**

_Wednesday June 11__th__ 2008_

The phone rang in his office a little past ten.

"Dr. Wilson."

"Hello, James. It's Blythe."

He leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. He wasn't completely surprised by her call. After all, it was her only son's birthday and she had no way of directly contacting him at the moment.

He managed to keep his tone cheery. "Blythe, how are you? I hope you are doing well."

"I'd be better if I could get a hold of my son to wish him a happy birthday. His home phone just rings incessantly and his cell goes right to voice mail. Is he is the office?"

"No, he's home, but he's unplugged the phone."

She let out a deep sigh. "It's because of his father's phone call, isn't it?"

Wilson did not want to get in the middle of this parent-child conflict. "He doesn't want the phone disturbing Issy while she is recovering."

Her tone grew concerned. "How is she doing? I've been so worried about the poor thing."

"She's getting better day by day."

She sighed again. "You are being deliberately vague with me, aren't you? I can't blame you, dear. I'm sure that Greg told you all the horrible things that John said to him. I hadn't even seen the news that morning. I was in the kitchen fixing breakfast when suddenly I hear John let out a big whoop. Next thing I know, he is on the phone and saying such terrible things to Greg. I couldn't stop him."

In a placating tone, Wilson reassured her: "I'm sure you couldn't."

"You'll be speaking to him later on today, won't you? Could you please tell him that I called and wanted to wish him a happy birthday? And tell him that the opinions of John House are _not _the opinions of _everyone_ in the household. I don't believe those news stories for one minute. Issy seemed like a very nice girl, determined, smart, a girl that could hold her own with my son. I think she's good for him. She was very brave rescuing those children and I don't believe for one minute that she was a hooker."

Wilson hoped for House's sake that her words were true. "I'll tell him what you said."

"His father is out fishing with one of his buddies. He won't be home for at least two hours. Maybe you could convince Greg to give me a call?"

"I'll see if I can get in touch with him, but I can't promise that he'll call."

"I know. Just tell him what I said. Thank you, James."

"No problem, Blythe. Take care."

They said their good-byes and hung up.

Wilson stared at his watch. It wasn't too early to call his best friend. He picked up his cell and dialed the 'bat phone.'

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House slowly came to consciousness, relishing the delicious warmth pressed against the front of his body. Issy still wasn't comfortable with letting him see the scars on her breasts so she had taken to sleeping in tee shirts. While he missed feeling her naked skin against his, he understood the reason and continued to hope that, with a lot of reassurances, the habit would change in the near future.

She didn't wear panties to bed, though. For some reason, the hysterectomy scar on her abdomen did not bother her nearly as much as the scars on her breasts and she didn't seem to mind if he saw that one. He pushed her tee shirt higher, to wad up just underneath her breasts, so that he could press as much of her delicious nakedness against him as possible. Mt Gregory throbbed against her soft skin.

Her body shifted and then he heard a soft whisper. "Hmmm, someone's up early this morning."

He felt her hand gently wrap around his morning wood and his eyes drifted close with the pleasure of her touch. He allowed himself to enjoy the delicious contact for a few moments, but wouldn't let her bring him off. He gently took her hand, brought it to his mouth and kissed her palm.

"Not bad for a 49-year-old man, huh?"

Her eyes flew open. "It's your birthday. Ohmigod! And I don't have a present or anything for you."

"You are here with me; that is present enough."

She pouted: "I really wanted to do something special for your birthday."

"And I wanted to do something special for yours. Sometimes things get fucked up. I tell ya what; we'll plan a day and that will become _our_ birthday celebration. How about?"

House thought for a moment. He wanted to make sure that it was after the six-week mark so that hopefully they could have sex. "How about July 19th?"

"What's so special about that day?"

He shrugged: "Nothing in particular. It's a Saturday and maybe we'll take the money that we are going to steal from the twins and take a little vacation. We could go to the shore or back to New York or anywhere else that you'd like to celebrate our birthdays."

Issy thought for a moment; that date would be just about two months since her operation, so hopefully if she were still around, they could have sex that day. It was a long time to wait, but if House were willing, maybe she would stick around. She wouldn't mind one more round of mind-blowing sex before she moved away.

"OK, that sounds good. But what about today? I'd like to do something special for you today too."

"I didn't get to do anything special for you on your birthday."

"I was _unconscious_. You stayed by my bedside and took care of me. Plus you got me that lovely heart necklace. I don't even have a little gift for you."

House had never been big on celebrating his birthday. It brought back too many bad memories of his childhood. He had been either in the middle of a move or was the new kid in town and had no one to invite to his birthday party, even if his dad would have let him have one. His mother would make him a small cake and if he were lucky, there might be a present, but his dad didn't believe in spoiling him, even on his birthday. As he moved into his adult years, he still tended to mostly ignore his birthday. Stacy would get him a gift and they would go out to dinner and have birthday sex, but since she had left, he'd mostly spent his birthdays alone, ignoring even Wilson's gesture to take him out to dinner.

He ran his hands up her back and underneath the tee shirt. Right here, in his arms was everything that he wanted, but he knew that she _needed_ to do something for him. His eyes scanned the room until they landed on the milk crates that she still used to hold her books. An idea hit him; not only would it give them something to do today, but it would hopefully make her feel more secure with their relationship. He was tired of hearing her say that she was 'useless' and 'needed to leave so that he could find someone else'. What she _really needed_ was to get those ideas out of her head.

"Actually I have the day planned out. How do you feel today? Do you feel up to making me a birthday breakfast?"

She nodded eagerly: "Oh yes. What would you like?"

House had had Laydee buy all the necessary groceries. "Remember those breakfast burritos that you made for me on Cinco de Mayo?"

"Oh, I could make those. I might need a little help rolling them up because of the cast though."

He rolled over onto his back and pulled her lazily on top on his chest. "I'll help you with that part. Can you manage the rest?"

"I think so. If not, I'll ask for help."

Pleased with her response, he kissed her lips. "Good girl."

She gave him the broadest smile that he'd seen since they have been home. His heart swelled with love and he kissed her again, slipping his tongue into her mouth and tangling with her own. His hands stroked the length of her back and then cupped her ass, pressing her against his raging hard-on.

Issy sighed: "I wish I could give you some birthday sex."

"I know, baby. July 19th. We'll have some really hot birthday sex then."

She gave him a kittenish look. "I could still give you a birthday blowjob."

The suggestion was very appealing, but he wanted it to be reciprocal, not one-sided. "We'll see. How about you get started on breakfast and then we'll get on with the other fun I have planned for today."

Her eyebrows arched: "What other fun?"

"You'll see after breakfast."

"OK. I'll go start the coffee."

She climbed off of the bed and started for the door. Just then the 'bat phone' rang. House frowned and grabbed for it; Wilson was on the Caller ID.

"Let me get this and I'll be right behind you, baby."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House growled into the phone. "Kinda early, isn't it?"

"Hey, it's after ten, your usual time to drag into work. I figured you'd be awake by now. Happy birthday, by the way."

"While I appreciate the sentiment, you could have called at a more decent hour to express it."

Wilson chuckled; House was in fine form today. "How's Issy today?"

"Good. She smiled at me and is eagerly making me a birthday breakfast as we speak."

"Excellent. Aside from the birthday greeting, I had a little news to tell you."

He recited the details of the phone call to his friend; House listened silently until Wilson was finished. After a long pause, Wilson asked: "House? You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here. So she said he'd be gone for a couple of hours?"

"That's what she said."

"Alright. You bringing me a birthday cake tonight?"

Surprised by his request, Wilson asked: "You want me to?"

"Issy feels bad that she can't do more for me, so I thought if you and the chick came by with a cake, she'd feel a little better."

So it's not for you, really, it's for Issy."

"Hey, she was unconscious on her birthday. She could use some cake too. Get that chocolate decadent cake from Chez Alice and some ice cream from the Bent Spoon."

In a sarcastic tone, he asked: "Shall I bring dinner too?"

House huffed: "I thought that was a given."

Before Wilson could reply, he heard the phone click off. House had hung up on him.

"Bastard."

But he didn't really mean it. Wilson was pleased that things seemed to be better at the House abode and didn't mind bringing food. After all, it was House's birthday. He just hoped that Natalie didn't have to work tonight, as he really wanted her to come along. He'd ask her later when she came by to drop off Issy's purse.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House quickly plugged in the landline and dialed his parents' number. Hoping that Wilson was right and that Mom had not been feeding him a line, he waited for the call to go through.

Mom answered on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Hey Mom, it's me."

"Oh, Greg, darling. Happy birthday, dear."

The sound of her voice made him feel like a small child again. "Thanks, Mom."

Then her voice choked up. "Greg, I'm so sorry about your father. I hadn't even heard the news and I didn't know what was going on, until he started yelling into the phone. And then I couldn't stop him."

Stunned that she had actually apologized for his behavior for once, he managed to mumble: "It's not your fault."

"Those damn reporters! How could they say such horrible things about Issy? She was so brave, rescuing those poor children."

Bitterly, he replied: "There are a lot of sleazeballs in that business, Mom. They are the whores; whores for soundbites."

"And they get worse as time goes on, because they are allowed to get away with so much! When John Kennedy was president, he had affairs and no one talked about it. It didn't end up in the papers. Now, if a public figure so much as _looks_ at another woman, the headlines scream that he's having an affair. Anyway, enough of that. How is Issy doing?"

"She's healing from her injuries, Mom, but it hasn't been easy. She still has a long recovery in front of her."

"Poor thing. I wish there was something that I could do to help."

His anger bubbled up at that point. Where had this woman been all the years that his dad had been beating him and verbally abusing him? Why hadn't she stepped in to stop his dad from making him sleep in the yard all night or getting dunked in a bath of ice? He squeezed the phone so tightly that it creaked under his grip.

"There really isn't anything you can do to help. Dad has done his damage, but there will be no more. I will never speak to him again. Issy did not deserve to listen to his tirade and I didn't deserve all of the things that he did to me as a kid. As far as I'm concerned, Mom, he no longer exists. You should get yourself a private email account and your own personal cell phone if you want to stay in touch with me. I will not call this number again. Issy is very precious to me and I will not allow Dad to terrorize her the way he did that night at dinner when you were here, or like he did over the phone. It is not happening again. The abuse stops now."

He heard his mother sniff and gave her a moment to compose herself. "I can't blame you, son. He came from a generation where the man was supposed to rule the roost and he did."

Amazed that he was able to keep an even tone, he went on: "No, Mom, he came from an abusive family and just passed it on. But the buck stops here. It goes no further. I need to go check on Issy now. Please think about what I asked you to do."

"I will, Greg. I'll get a G-Mail account and I'll see about getting a cell phone just for me. Please give my best to Issy and I do hope you have a happy birthday. I love you, dear."

Hoping that this wouldn't be the last time that they spoke, House replied: "Love you too, Mom. Good-bye."


	75. Chapter 75

**Chapter 75**

This time, he remembered to unplug the phone. He popped two Vicodins and then pulled on a pair of sleep pants, giving himself a few extra minutes to calm down before heading out to the kitchen to check on Issy.

The kitchen smelled heavenly, coffee, scrambled eggs and spices all mixed up together in one aromatic scent. He paused by the pantry and watched as she bustled about. When she turned in his direction, her face immediately lit up. "Oh, good. Just in time. Can you?"

Two steps forward, the cane hit the floor and he wrapped both arms tightly around her. His lips crashed down on hers and they shared a passionate kiss. When they ran out of oxygen, he pulled back only millimeters from her mouth, just enough to take a breath.

"I love you, Issy."

Then his mouth was on hers again. She briefly wondered what had caused this passionate display of affection but decided that she didn't care, as his tongue danced gently with hers.

This time when they broke for air, she managed to say it back. "I love you too."

He gave her that smile, that special one that she was positive that no one else saw but her. It made her tingle all over, but a sputtering noise from the stove brought her back to reality.

"Oh, I gotta flip the eggs."

"What do you need me to do?"

"One sec and I'll have you do the rolling."

When the eggs were ready, Issy filled the tortillas and House rolled and placed them in the baking dish. They were then covered with enchilada sauce and cheese and then placed in the oven for a few minutes. Once the cheese had melted, breakfast was ready. Between Issy' broken arm and House's need for his cane, it required a few trips to carry everything to the coffee table, but they managed. The food was delicious and House savored every bite.

When he had cleaned his plate, he let out a loud burp and settled against the back of the couch with his coffee. "Mmmm, my birthday's off to a good start."

Issy sipped her own coffee and then asked: "What's next on your agenda?"

He reached out and lightly stroked her thigh. It was an interesting contrast; there were some nubby places and some smooth ones. Issy commented as if she had read his mind.

"Between the cast and the plastic bag, I have trouble holding the razor in my left hand. So, it's not as smooth as it should be."

He gave her a lazy smile. "I can help you with that, but first there is something else I want to do."

The next thing he had in mind would probably generate a bit of dust, so he figured it would be better to shower afterwards. He took her hand and led her into the bedroom.

"You like the furniture in here?"

Issy creased her brow, wondering where this question came from. "Yes, I do. It's very nice. Why do you ask?"

He rubbed his forefinger against his chin. "Well, I was thinking that those milk crates kinda wreck the _ambience_ of the room, doncha think?"

Her face fell; all this time she'd had her books in that corner and he never said a thing. Why now?

In a subdued tone, she replied: "I know they're ugly, but I didn't have anything else to hold my books."

"You do now. Come on."

He had her pick up one side of a crate with her good right hand while he picked up the other side with his cane-less left hand. Together, they carried the crate into the hall, setting it down in front of the built-in bookcase. Then they went back for the other one.

He pointed up: "See that top shelf? It's empty."

Unsure of where he was going with this, Issy tried for humor. "Stating the obvious, babe."

House chuckled: "Funny girl. See this shelf?"

He tapped a middle shelf with his cane.

Issy nodded.

"This is now your shelf. Hand me the books on it and I'll place them up here on the empty shelf. It's too high for you to use it without a stepladder, but no problem for me. We'll transfer these books up here and you can put yours on that shelf. Then we can get rid of the milk crates."

Issy's jaw dropped. He wanted her to put her tattered old paperbacks and nursing textbooks on his nice bookcase? Why would he want to do that? Her confused mind could uncover no reason for it.

His voice pulled her out of her reverie. Gently he asked: "Is this too much to do? Are you feeling tired?"

Slowly she shook her head. "No, I feel fine. I was just w-wondering if it w-was dusty on the top shelf. Maybe we should run a Swiffer over it before we transfer the b-books."

House ran a finger along the shelf and uncovered a small amount of dust. "Couldn't hurt."

"I'll grab one from the kitchen. B-be right b-back."

Issy hurried to the kitchen, leaned on the counter and took a few deep breaths. His gesture shook her to the core. Her mind couldn't understand why he was doing this, but her heart told her that it was because he wanted her to stay.

_He loves you, you idiot! He's combining your things with his because he wants you to stay. Stop thinking about moving away and accept what he is offering you: love, a home and a future together._

Issy fumbled under the sink until she managed to pull out the green box of Swiffer wipes. She wanted to believe her heart and his actions, she really did, but good things did not usually happen to her.

_July 19__th__._ The date floated into her brain. He had picked that date for some unknown reason. If she could just stick it out until then, maybe she'd know the truth about his feelings and her own.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

It took them about an hour to dust the books and transfer them to the appropriate shelves. Issy couldn't help smiling at the sight of her book collection sitting on such a nice bookcase.

Again, House read her mind. "They look a lot better there, don't they?"

She hugged his waist with her good arm. "Yes, they do. Thank you for this."

He bent down and kissed the top of her head. "Should've done it a long time ago. Let's get rid of these old things."

They set the milk crates by the kitchen trashcan, intending to take them out to the dumpster later on. Then he pulled her into his arms. "Ready for the next part of my birthday celebration?"

She propped her chin on his chest and stared up into his amazing blue eyes. "Anything you want."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

His answer surprised her. "You want to do what?"

House repeated his request. "I want to shower with you. I want to shampoo your hair and shave your legs and wash your lovely body."

She protested: "But it's your birthday. I should be doing those things for you."

"I really don't want my legs shaved, baby. That's just too girly for me."

"Well, except for that. I mean, I should be pampering you today."

"You are, trust me. Will you let me do this?"

How could she turn him down? It's not like she had another gift for him. She didn't want him to inspect her scars so closely, but he really didn't seem to mind them. She nodded her agreement to get naked and shower with him.

House was thrilled. He couldn't believe that she agreed to do this. Now was his chance to shower her quite literally with affection and show her that her scars had no effect on his feelings for her.

While Issy brushed her hair out, House adjusted the taps until the water was the appropriate temperature. Then he dropped his sleep pants and faced her directly, his large scar in her line of sight.

She stared at it for a moment, and then looked up into his eyes. His gaze was loving but intense. She knew what he was trying to tell her without speaking the words out loud.

_My body's not perfect, yet you love me anyway. Why would your scars make a difference in how I feel towards you?_

She gave him a small smile, and then she turned away so as to not face him head-on while she pulled the tee shirt over her head. She didn't know why she did that; he was about to see her naked in a minute anyway, but she preferred to postpone the inevitable.

"I need the plastic bag for my cast."

"Got it right here."

Finally, she turned towards him, her right arm crossed over her chest and her hand covering the largest scar on her left breast. It was pointless, there was no way to cover all of the scars but she did it anyway.

House didn't say anything about her attempts at covering up; he placed the plastic bag over her cast and secured it. Then he directed her towards the tub.

In a formal tone, he said: "My lady's bath awaits."

That made her giggle and House was smiling as he assisted her into the bath chair.

"Now you sit there like a good little princess and I'll wash your hair."

He took the showerhead off of the holder and wet her down thoroughly. Then he dumped some of the citrus-scented shampoo into his hands and started washing her hair. As his strong fingers scrubbed her scalp, Issy found herself relaxing into his touch. Her eyes closed, her head lolled back, if she hadn't been sitting in the chair, her knees would have been trembling and unable to support her weight. As it was, she felt boneless enough that she thought she might slide off the chair. Her hands reached out for support; she grasped his hips and held on.

House smiled inwardly at her reaction; he had barely started the shampoo and she was already relaxing. He took his time, washing and rinsing her hair and then he applied the deep conditioner, rubbing it in well.

"We'll let that sit while I take care of other areas of your beautiful body."

Issy's eyes drifted open; House's cock was at eye level in front of her and impulsively she leaned forward to plant a kiss on him.

House chuckled: "Little minx. Not right now, save that for later."

"How much later?"

House didn't answer; he just smiled at her and then perched his butt on the edge of the tub, patting his knee to indicate that he wanted a foot up there. He applied the shave cream and carefully started shaving her right leg.

Issy watched him with fascination: "Have you ever done this before?"

House merely shook his head.

Watching him groom her gave her a funny tingle. After another moment, Issy said softly: "You know, it's kinda sexy."

He waggled his eyebrows at her: "Maybe we'll have to do this more often."

House took his time, making sure to not nick her with the razor. When her legs were smooth, he rinsed the conditioner out of her hair and then picked up the body wash. This was the most difficult part. How would Issy feel when he touched her scars?

He rubbed the body wash between his hands and then started soaping her shoulders. Issy closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. From her shoulders, he slid slowly around to the front and ever so gently touched her breasts. When his fingers slid over the biggest scar, Issy let out a gasp.

House stopped immediately. "What is it, baby? Did I hurt you?"

"No, no, it just feels funny there. It's like, it's numb."

Nodding sagely, he answered: "Nerve endings were cut. It will take a while for them to grow back."

"How long?"

"It takes a long time for severed nerves to regenerate. It still could take up to a year, maybe longer."

"Wow, that long?"

House didn't answer; his severed nerves had never fully regenerated, resulting in continuing pain in his thigh.

As if she had read his mind, she asked: "Is that why you still have such pain in your thigh? From severed nerves?"

"That's part of the reason. The severed nerves never fully regenerated and they never will. So I will always have nerve pain and then there's the muscle cramps from using the inappropriate muscles to limp around. All things combined to make me the happy cripple that I am today."

"You're not a cripple. Stop talking like that."

"You gonna stop thinking that you're ugly just cuz you have a few scars now?"

He tweaked her left nipple. "Quid pro quo, princess."

Issy sulked: "I never said that I was ugly."

With a smile on his face, House replied: "Good, cuz you're not. You're beautiful. You're a _goddess_ and I am one lucky bastard to have you naked in my tub."

Irritated at his little lesson, Issy snarked: "A goddess, a princess, a little minx? Which is it? Make up your mind."

House chuckled: "All of the above, my love, all of the above."

He leaned forward and gently bussed her lips. "Don't you get it? You are everything to me. You are the woman I love."

He nonchalantly picked up her right arm and started washing it. "Despite the hairy armpit."

Issy blushed to the roots of her hair and tried to yank her arm out of his grasp. "I told you that I couldn't hold the razor in my left hand, therefore I couldn't shave that side."

"You think I care about a little armpit hair? It's kinda cute actually."

He leaned forward and kissed her pit.

Issy's mouth fell open in shock. "I can't believe you just did that. You _like_ it? You want me to keep it?"

"Hell, no. I'm shaving it off right now. I'm just saying that it doesn't gross me out. Actually."

He paused for a moment, razor in his hand and then he set it back down. "I'm leaving it for today. I wanna show you something after we get out of the tub."

"What is it?"

"A surprise. You'll see."

Issy couldn't get anything more out of House. He finished washing her body but left her armpits unshaved. She was frustrated by his actions, but figured that she would just try to shave them herself tomorrow.

After House had finished Issy's ablutions, it was Issy's turn to start on him. She poured a little shampoo on House's head and did her best to give him a one-handed shampoo job. By the look of pure pleasure on his face, she could tell that he was enjoying it. The body wash was next and she did the best job that she could, and, as usual, saved his package for last. Her soapy hand got quite the rise out of Mt. Gregory. House let out a sigh; he didn't want her to finish him off in the tub as he had other plans for the rest of the day.

"Let me rinse off."

In a sultry tone, Issy asked: "Wouldn't you like me to _get_ _you off_ instead?"

"Not just yet."

Issy pouted: "You keep saying that. I seem to be able to still turn you on, but then you don't want me to do anything else. I don't get it."

As House stood under the spray, he replied: "You will."


	76. Chapter 76

**Chapter 76**

They dried off but he wouldn't let Issy get dressed. Naked, they strolled down the hallway to the bedroom, with House making a quick grab off the bookshelf on the way. He hid the book behind his back and wouldn't let her see it.

Despite all the nice things that he had said to her, Issy still felt self-conscious about her scars and longed to cover them up with a tee shirt, but House had other ideas. He had her lay down on the bed without getting dressed and then climbed in next to her.

She snuggled into the crook of his arm, half hiding her scars by the way she folded her body into his. He smiled down at her. "Comfy?"

How could she convey to him that there was nowhere else that she wanted to be? She felt so warm and safe in his arms. "Very."

He pecked her cheek. "Good."

There was an air of excitement about him, and Issy didn't have to wait long to find out what that was about. He pulled the book out and showed it to her.

Her spirits took a nosedive. "_The Joy of Sex?_ Is this a joke? What a thing to show me _now_ when we can't have any?"

House ignored her comments. "This is the 1972 edition. When I first saw this book as a teenager, I thought this was the hottest thing ever. Check out the woman in this drawing."

He flipped to page 46 and showed her a drawing.

Issy's eyes widened: "She has hairy armpits!"

"Yep, it was somewhat common back in the early 70's when women were going through all that feminist stuff. Some of them stopped shaving their legs and their armpits because they were not going to conform to society's expectations of what a woman should look like. As a teenager, I didn't really care about that part of her body; I was more interested in looking at her breasts and her pussy, and of course the pictures of the actual sex act are pretty hot for drawings. I didn't get my hands on any _Playboy's_ until later on, so this book was basically my introduction to porn. I jacked off over page 38 so many times."

Dryly, Issy said: "Thanks for sharing. I still don't know why you are showing me this when we can't have sex right now."

He gave her an indulgent smile. "Your hairy armpits reminded me of the pictures in this book and then I remembered something else that was in this book. A poem."

"A poem? In a sex book?"

"Yep and by a rather unusual poet. Ever heard of e.e. cummings?"

"I've heard of him; he's the one who never capitalizes stuff, right?"

"That's right. We can look at the naughty pictures later, right now, I want to read you this poem."

Issy was mystified at his behavior. _Read her a poem? _Had he hit his head or something? Had too many Vicodins warped his brain? He certainly didn't seem like himself.

House flipped through the pages until he found the right one. Then he held the book in his left hand, cuddled her closer with his right and started to read.

_i like my body when it is with your  
body. It is so quite new a thing.  
Muscles better and nerves more._

He planted two little kisses on her cheek and then continued reading.

_i like your body. i like what it does,_

His hand gently caressed the length of her back.

_i like its hows. i like to feel the spine  
of your body and its bones, and the trembling  
-firm-smooth ness and which i will  
again and again and again  
kiss, i like kissing this and that of you,_

As if to emphasize the point, he planted several kisses across her face. Issy let out a small moan. Between his affectionate kisses, the words of the poem, and his sexy timbre of his voice, she could feel her passion rising.

_i like, slowly stroking the, shocking fuzz  
of your electric fur, and what-is-it comes  
over parting flesh ... And eyes big love-crumbs,_

_and possibly i like the thrill_

_of under me you so quite new_

He closed the book, tossed it aside, and leaned down to press his lips against hers. The kiss started out languid, as if they had all day, but then the passion swelled and House eased Issy onto her back. He planted little kisses across her jaw and up to her ear, before changing direction and heading downward to her neck.

Issy's mind raced. _He's getting closer to your ugly scars! _A part of her wanted to stop him, but the pleasure side of her brain won out and let him continue his delightful ministrations.

His kisses continued slowly down her chest, brushing across the scars until he captured a nipple in his mouth. He laved and suckled it, before kissing his way across the valley of her breasts to the other one. The trail of moisture cooled in the air and was a delightful contrast to the warmth of his mouth.

The other nipple received equal attention as the first, so as to not spark any jealousy between Selma and Patty. His soft lips continued to kiss every inch of her breasts, while his hands caressed her torso. Mt. Gregory was at full salute and pressing against the soft skin of her thigh. Finally she moaned with desire.

"Oh, Greg, this feels so good."

He smiled up at her: "I want to make you feel good. I like your body. I like kissing your body. And I _love_ you, my Issy-belle."

His lips moved deliciously down her body again, licking and kissing every centimeter. He fucked her belly button with his tongue until she moaned. Only then did he move lower, nuzzling her curls and laving the scar on her belly. Although she didn't blame him for the loss of her womb, he still felt some residual guilt over the part he had played in that decision. He kissed the scar over and over as if to ask forgiveness; her fingers toying in his hair told him that none was needed.

His lips moved over her hips and down to her inner thigh; the pleasant sensations elicited another moan from Issy. His fingers gently parted the pink petals of her sex. He could see her wetness and knew that her desire was rising, but he couldn't risk putting even a finger inside of her at this point. It was too soon for any penetration, but he could kiss her lips and that special button.

Greg's breath was warm on her sex and her hips rose involuntarily towards him. She wanted him so badly and was frustrated that he had started her down this path that could not be completed. Just as she was about to voice her complaint, she felt his tongue lightly touch her clitoris and a jolt of electricity zapped through her body. She let out a small cry and he did it again. Another pleasurable burst hit her. House palmed her ass with both hands and settled fully between her legs. Tentative teasing little licks very quickly had Issy thrusting her hips up for more. When he surmised that she was peaking, he pressed his tongue flat against his clit and rubbed hard.

Issy screamed out: "Greg! Oh, god, Greg."

Her body trembled with orgasm and he kept the right amount of pressure on her clit until she cried out: "No more. No more."

She was panting from the exertion. House had a lascivious grin on his face as he moved up the bed to lie next to her. "I like kissing your body. I like kissing your mouth."

His lips crashed down on hers; her lips parted and allowed his tongue to mimic the motions that his cock so badly wanted to do. Issy felt his erection pressing against her thigh. This time, when she reached for it, he didn't stop her. He cupped her face with both hands and kissed her passionately as he thrust his hardness into her hand. It had been too long and his passion was running so high after making love to Issy; he didn't last long before falling over the edge with a loud moan.

House collapsed onto his back, but kept a tight hold on Issy so that she rolled onto her side next to him. It took him a few minutes before he could speak again.

When he did, it shook her to the core. "As the dead poet said, I like our bodies together. I like kissing this and that of you. But what we have is more than just the physical. I love you with my heart, Issy-belle. Never doubt that for a moment. I love you."

As he tenderly kissed her mouth, Issy's eyes pooled with tears and a lone one leaked out and slid slowly down her cheek. There was no need to wait until July 19th to find out his real feelings. He had just laid it all out there for her to see. And she loved him back with a passion that she had never felt before. But was love alone enough to overcome the stigma attached to her past and allow them to have a future together? She didn't know the answer to that question but for the moment, she was content to lie in post-orgasmic bliss and drift off to sleep in her lover's arms.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Since Wilson was expecting Natalie to show up anytime after 4PM, he left his office door ajar for her, but she knocked anyway.

He called out: "Come on in."

Her face was a picture of excitement; she could barely contain her glee. "Guess what?"

He was almost positive as to what she was going to say, but wanted to hear it from her. "Tell me."

She squealed: "I got the job on Peds!"

Wilson's smile stretched completely across his face. "That's fantastic, Natalie. Congratulations!"

The girl could barely contain herself; she was practically bouncing with joy. Wilson chuckled, rose from his chair and came around the desk to stand next to her. In a teasing tone, he said: "You can throw away those pasties now."

"I don't start on Peds for two weeks, so I'll have to work until then but, yes! The pasties are going in the trash! I can't wait!"

Impulsively, she threw her arms around Wilson's neck and kissed him on the mouth. Before he had a chance to respond properly, she pulled back and stammered; "Oh, I, I, I don't know what came over me. I'm just so excited. I wasn't thinking."

He put his arms around her and said: "You're happy and I'm happy for you."

Wilson placed a gentle kiss on Natalie's lips; she wrapped her arms around his neck again and they deepened the kiss. Wilson felt a twitch in his groin and sighed inwardly; her lips were as soft as he had imagined and her body felt amazing pressed up against him. He knew that instant that he definitely wanted to get to know her better.

"A little celebration is in order. I'd like to take you out, but I have a previous obligation tonight. How would you like to go to a party with me?"

To Wilson's delight, Natalie didn't have to work and she agreed to accompany Wilson on his shopping errands and to House's little birthday shindig. He followed her back to her apartment so that she could change and leave her car. The scrubs hid her magnificent figure so he was happy to wait while she changed into sandals, low-rider jeans, and a black crop top. His fingers twitched to touch the exposed skin, but he acted the gentleman and merely took her hand as he walked her back to his car.

It took three stops to get everything that they needed, but finally they were on their way to House's apartment. Natalie slung her and Issy's purses over her shoulder and carried in the cake, while Wilson grabbed all the other bags. A quick glance around revealed no lurking reporters; hopefully they had moved onto more exciting news stories, like Tatum O'Neal being busting for buying crack and Miley Cyrus's half-nude photo appearing on the Internet.

Dressed only in jeans and a band tee, a much more relaxed-looking House greeted them at the door. Wilson gave him an inquiring look and asked: "Having a good birthday so far?"

House gave him a knowing smile and said: "Fantastic. And if you brought that chocolate cake from Chez Alice, it will hit number one with a bullet."

_They had sex?_ No, that wasn't possible. It was far too soon for that, but something had happened to put that smile on House's face. Whatever it was, Wilson was happy for his friend, but also hoped he'd find out later exactly what had happened.

Issy wandered into the room, bare-foot and dressed in a similar fashion, jeans and a casual tee shirt, with a sleepy look on her face.

Natalie pulled no punches. "Wow, if I didn't know better, I'd swear you two just rolled out of bed."

House chuckled and grabbed the cake out of her hands. "Who says we didn't?"

Issy blushed and turned her face.

Natalie giggled: "Well, Happy birthday to you, House."

He smirked: "It is, so far. Did you get the ice cream too?"

"Of course we did, and I have some very exciting news to share."

When Natalie was sure that she had everyone's attention, she spilled it: "I got a job on the Peds floor."

Aside from oncology, House considered that floor to be the worst place to work. Who wanted to be around sick and injured children all the time? But Natalie acted like she had struck gold with it.

Issy squealed: "Congratulations! When do you start?"

"In two weeks. I'll still need to work at the club for a little while longer until I start getting paychecks from PPTH, but I'll be able to toss my pasties away really soon!"

Issy opened her mouth to express her delight at the news, but House interjected: "Don't throw them away, keep them for dress-up nights with Wilson. I bet he'd look really good in them."

Three pairs of wide eyes stared back at him. Wilson looked like he wanted to commit mayhem, but before he could say anything, Natalie snorted with laughter. "Ohmigod, now _that's_ a visual. Sorry, Dr Wilson, but I can't help, hmm, picturing, oh my."

She giggled and then grabbed Issy's good arm. "Come on, I need to get out of here for a moment. Why don't you show me, uh, your dress?"

The two girls headed down the hallway, Natalie's laughter floating in their wake.

Hands on hips, Wilson squared off at House. In a sarcastic tone, he said: "Thanks a lot for that."

"You're welcome. Don't be pissed; I really think she liked the idea. You'll have to try it one night, just for shits and giggles."

Wilson sputtered: "House, I haven't even, we haven't, I mean."

House waved his hand at him. "So you haven't slept together yet. Big deal. You will."

Then he peered closely into his friend's face. "You've kissed her, haven't you?"

When Wilson didn't answer, House went on in a teasing tone. "You did! You kissed her and you liked it. You want more."

Wilson rolled his eyes. He could never keep a secret from House; the man always figured it out. "Who wouldn't? Have you seen that bod? And those lips are as soft as, as"

"As soft as your pillow-top mattress that you want to lay her down on?"

Wilson opened his mouth, and then closed it again. Finally he answered: "Yeah."

House chuckled: "Can't blame ya."

He started pawing through the grocery sacks: "So what exactly are you making for my birthday dinner?"

House pulled the porterhouse steaks out of the bag: "Oh, yeah. Now this is what I'm talking about. Good choice, Wilson."

It was Wilson's turn to tease his friend a bit. "Your mood seems to have greatly improved. If I didn't know better, I'd swear you two had sex."

House just chuckled as he stuck the ice cream into the freezer.

Wilson hissed: "You _didn't_? It's way too soon. _What did you do_?"

At this, House's expression grew pensive. "Nothing that would hurt her. Hopefully, I managed to demonstrate the depth of my feelings for her and that her scars and her past do not change a thing as far as I'm concerned."

Wilson blinked twice as he pondered House's words. "Hope it worked."

House gave him a nod and then turned away. "Thanks, me too."

They were quiet for a moment and then Wilson said: "So, how's the house hunting going?"

"Bonnie's found a couple of possibles. She's just gotta remember the 'no stairs' stipulation. I'll show you what she's found so far before the girls come back."

House unlocked his laptop and quickly bought up the email with the links. He showed Wilson the two that he liked best. Wilson was just commenting about the second house when the girls walked back into the room. House quickly closed the laptop before Issy could see what they were looking at.

**A/N: The Joy Of Sex. Edited by Alex Comfort, M.B., Ph.D. Page numbers refer to the 1972 edition. The poem was actually in the 2008 edition, but I stretched things to make it appear like it was also in the first edition.**

**Poem: 'i like my body when it is with your' by e.e. cummings**

**A/N: An early post because my friend and fellow fanfic writer snarkland78 is coming to visit this weekend! Check out her stories if you haven't read them. They are hysterical! My usual Sunday chapter will be posted on Monday when I get back. Thank you so much for reading!**


	77. Chapter 77

**Chapter 77**

Natalie couldn't stop giggling. "Can you see it? Dr. Wilson in a g-string and pasties?"

Issy replied: "It _is_ an interesting visual."

She plopped down on the bed. "I kissed him."

"_You did?_ What happened?"

Natalie relayed the events that had happened earlier in Wilson's office, concluding the tale with a question: "Do you think he likes me?"

Like Issy, Natalie had not had the most normal of childhoods and venturing into interpersonal relationships brought up a certain level of discomfort and uncertainty in her otherwise confident persona.

Issy nodded: "I do. I really thought that you two would hit it off and that's why I had wanted to set you up with him. Is he a good kisser?"

"Well the first time I took him by surprise, but the second time, let's just say, wow!"

Issy giggled: "I'm so happy for you."

"What about you? I bet House is a good kisser too. And this room _smells _like _sex_. You did just roll out of bed when we got here, didn't you?"

"Well, sorta. We had a nap this afternoon."

"Uh, huh, an after-sex nap? But Issy, you just had surgery. Are you supposed to be having sex so soon?"

"Well, we didn't really have sex, but, um, he made love to me. He, um, oh god, can that man kiss!"

"You got off from him kissing you?"

"Yeah, well, the particular _place_ he was kissing me was, let's just say, rather delightful."

Natalie reclined back on her elbows and gave her friend a knowing look. "Oh, he went down on you. _Nice._ I hate it when a guy won't do that. They expect you to go down on them, but won't return the favor. That's not fair."

"Greg isn't like that at all. He really."

She blushed and then went on. "I think he really gets off on watching me come. I thought that from the very beginning."

"Damn, you're a lucky girl. And who would have thought from his abrasive personality that he was so considerate in bed?"

"Yeah, well, let's keep that between us, OK?"

"Oh, no problem. You don't want word to get out and have a bunch of bitches conniving to steal your boyfriend."

_Her boyfriend._ For now, but would it last? Issy sighed inwardly and agreed: "Exactly."

"Well, you better show me your dress and then we can get back out there. I don't want Dr. Wilson to be thinking that we're in here talking about him dressed in pasties this whole time."

Issy giggled: "You know, you are going to have to stop calling him _Doctor _Wilson."

"I know, but I'm waiting until he asks me to call him James. I don't want to push it with him."

"You like him."

Natalie nodded: "Yeah, I do. Even going grocery shopping with him was fun. Go figure."

Issy singsonged like a teenager: "You like him, like him."

Natalie groaned: "Shut up and show me your dress already."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After Natalie admired her dress, the two girls headed down the hall. As they walked into the living room, Issy noticed that Greg was showing Wilson something on his laptop, which he hurriedly closed when they entered the room.

"The girls are done giggling over the image of you in pasties. Time to start dinner now."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "Are you helping in the kitchen?"

"It's my birthday. You want the birthday boy to help? What are you thinking? Besides, do I _ever?"_

Wilson had to agree. "Hell would freeze over first."

Natalie piped up. "I'll help you, Dr. Wilson."

Issy said: "I can help too."

House protested: "No, you gotta sit here and keep the birthday boy company. Our minions can cook for us."

"Greg! They are our friends. They're not our minions."

Wilson stood up and gently steered Issy towards the couch. "Don't worry, Issy. We can pamper the brilliant genius once a year on his birthday. Keep him company; dinner preparations really won't take long."

Then he turned to Natalie: "Would you mind helping me in the kitchen?"

She smiled: "Not at all, Dr. Wilson."

He smiled back. "It's James. Please call me James."

He tilted his head towards the kitchen. "This way."

As they started towards the kitchen, Natalie looked back over her shoulder and winked at Issy. When they were out of earshot, House asked: "What was that all about?"

"When we were talking in the bedroom, Natalie kept referring to him as _Doctor_ Wilson. I told her that she needed to call him by his first name and she said she was waiting until he told her to."

House smirked: "And he just did. There is a romance blooming right here in our apartment. And that's another reason to leave them alone in the kitchen."

He put his arm around Issy and pulled her close: "C'mon, let's make out while they are cooking. Let 'em get some ideas."

His lips brushed over hers and then he deepened the kiss. Issy responded with equal passion, although the back of her mind was busy wondering just what he had been showing Wilson on his laptop that he so obviously didn't want her to see.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Dinner was medium rare porterhouse steaks, garlic mashed potatoes and Caesar salad. It was simple, yet a delicious meal, and while Issy's appetite still wasn't back up to her usual, it was improving day by day. While they digested the main course, talk turned towards graduation, which was only three days away.

Wilson said: "I spoke to your team today and they are all thrilled to be in attendance."

House snorted: "All of them? Even Foreman? He's not thrilled about anything."

"He seemed to be OK with this. Thirteen is fine with it. Taub said that he would ask his wife but seemed confident that she would attend. Kutner, of course, is over the moon that you invited him. Don't be surprised if he shows up dressed in formal attire."

House chuckled at the visual. "What about the others?"

"I mentioned it to Cuddy and she promised to show up. Sophia will be there; Robin was off today, but I'll ask her tomorrow. Natalie gave me all the tickets and I'll pass them out tomorrow. You said that Chase and Cameron had already agreed to come?"

House nodded. His people would pack the house and provide a cheering section for his girlfriend and for Wilson's soon-to-be girlfriend. This would be very good for Issy.

Issy mumbled: "I just hope that _certain_ people don't show up. Like the media."

House replied: "If they do, we'll surround you and try to protect you from the cameras as best we can. Just keep your chin up and smile. It's your big day, the one you have been working so hard towards."

Natalie chimed in: "That's right, Iss. We'll just pretend that we are celebrities on our way to attend the Oscars and we'll smile pretty for the cameras."

Wilson said: "You know, when we got here tonight, I didn't see any reporters around. Maybe they finally got bored and left."

Issy let out a sigh. "I sure hope so."

Ready to change the subject, House asked: "So who's ready for cake and ice cream? I know I am."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The chocolate decadent cake from Chez Alice lived up to its reputation. Issy and Natalie had never had it before and moaned with delight after the first bite. House was pleased to see Issy eat an entire slice and a decent size scoop of dulce de leche ice cream too.

They chatted for a while after dessert, and then Wilson rose to collect the dishes. The girls got up to assist him, but Wilson insisted that Issy sit down and take it easy.

"There's not much to clean up and you have a broken arm. It will just take us a few minutes."

Reluctantly Issy sank back down onto the couch next to House and muttered: "I feel so useless."

House wrapped his arm around her and kissed her temple. "You're not useless; you're sidelined with an injury. And you're just not used to people doing things _for_ you. Relax and enjoy it. When that cast comes off, you know that I'm going to want cookies immediately."

Issy snuggled closer to him. "Chocolate chip or peanut butter scotchies?"

He kissed her again. "Both."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson and Natalie left shortly after cleaning up the kitchen. Issy thanked them profusely, but the duo just waved off her thanks.

Natalie said: "Call me if you need anything. I have to work the next two nights, but I'll see you at graduation."

Disappointed to hear that she had to work, Wilson suggested: "Why don't we all go together? I'll pick up Natalie and then swing by and get you two."

House teased: "Excellent. Having a chauffeur for the event would be just _fabulous_. Are you bringing the stretch limo or the stretch Hummer?"

Wilson rolled his eyes. "I think my Volvo will do just fine. After all, we don't want to attract any extra attention to ourselves, do we?"

House sobered quickly. "The Volvo will be fine, but you could still wear your chauffeur's cap."

"When pigs fly. Good night."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

They watched Letterman for a while and then headed off to bed. House immediately stripped off and climbed into bed, flipping the covers back on her side as an obvious invitation. Then he turned on the bedside lamp, put on his reading glasses and picked up a book, pretending to read while watching her out of the corner of his eye.

Issy slowly slipped off her jeans as she debated what to do. Should she wear a tee shirt to bed or not? It was nice sleeping _au naturale_ with him; she loved the feeling of their naked bodies pressed together. She just hated for him to see her scars. They made her feel so ugly.

The other part of her brain argued: _He's already seen them, you idiot! Hasn't he made it obvious that he doesn't care about them? Didn't he spend the afternoon kissing and caressing you all over including the scars? Didn't he spell it out quite clearly that he loves you?_

It was true; he didn't seem to mind them anymore than she minded his own scar. He had treated them as lovingly as any other part of her body. Issy felt a faint glimmer of hope. Maybe things would go right for once in her life. At least graduation seemed like a lock. And if Greg also wanted her to stay, well, that was whipped cream and cherries on top of the ice cream sundae.

She snuck a peek at him; he looked especially sexy when he wore his reading glasses down on the end of his nose. Mind made up, she pulled her tee shirt over her head and tossed it on the floor. Then she jettisoned the bra, slipped off her panties and climbed in beside him. She snuggled up to his side and he automatically wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"What are you reading?"

Pleased that she chose to get naked but determined not to make a big deal out of it, he merely showed her the cover of the book.

Her eyes widened. "_The Phantom Tollbooth?_ Why are you reading that? It's a kid's book."

"You've had this copy all these years. Obviously it meant something to you. I wanted to find out what."

Issy shrugged: "Milo is a bored little boy who goes off and has these amazing adventures and meets interesting characters. I was stuck in Akron, Ohio and."

Her voice trailed off.

In a gentle tone, he finished her sentence: "And needed a good distraction."

Ashamed of her need, Issy nodded.

His lips brushed against hers. "Nothing wrong with that, baby. Books do that; they can take you to other worlds without having to leave your room. I read a lot as a kid too; I just never got around to this one. So let's read it together."

Issy smiled and snuggled onto his shoulder. They shared a gentle kiss and then he opened her tattered copy and began to read: "There was once a boy named Milo who didn't know what to do with himself – not just sometimes, but always."

They took turns reading to each other. Issy went into such a fit of giggles on page thirty when Tock the watchdog got upset at Milo for killing time, that even House had to chuckle at the antics. By the time they reached Chapter Four, House could see why a periodic visit to this mystical land had been a good distraction for Issy.

After five chapters, they decided to call it a night. House marked their place, and set the book and his glasses on the nightstand before turning off the light. In the darkness, he pressed his body fully against hers and kissed her deeply.

His voice was a whisper: "Thank you."

"For what?"

His hands stroked the length of her back. "The best birthday that I ever had."

She protested: "But I didn't bake you a cake or get you a gift."

His breath was warm in her ear as he asked: "Do you love me?"

Issy squeezed him tighter: "Yes, I love you. I love you with all my heart."

He smiled against her skin: "Best gift ever."

**A/N: The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norman Juster with illustrations by Jules Feiffer. Originally published 1961. A most amazing book.**

**Thanks for your patience while I was on my little vacation. I'm back and blasting away on my Nano fic now! Which is where this story started last year at this time!**


	78. Chapter 78

**A/N: Sorry for the delay! RL and writing for NaNo are competing for my attention!**

**Chapter 78**

_Friday June 13__th__, 2008_

It was around 2PM on Friday afternoon when the 'bat phone' rang. This time, it was Taub's number displayed in the Caller ID.

House flipped open his phone: "What's up? Oh, wait, is that a politically incorrect question to ask a vertically challenged person?"

Taub rolled his eyes even though House was not there to see his response. "What's _up_ is that a lawyer from Ohio named Adam Howard is trying to reach you. I told him that I'd call you and you'd get back to him as he would like to hear from you ASAP."

"Got it. Any interesting cases turn up yet?"

"A very unusual presentation of lupus. Right-sided paralysis was the only symptom. Foreman thought it was neurological, of course, but Thirteen felt certain that there was more going on. Then Cameron got in on the DDX and pegged it. She and Thirteen are going to write an article about it."

"Oooo, a little girl-on-girl action. Damn, I miss all the fun stuff."

In a sarcastic tone, Taub replied: "Kutner made a video; it should be up on YouTube in a day or so. Call the lawyer back. It sounded urgent."

"Lawyers make everything sound urgent. Everyone on board to show up at graduation tomorrow?"

"As far as I know. Wilson passed out the tickets yesterday and everyone took theirs."

"Have everyone meet out front at 1:45."

"You want us to wait out front for you? You think the media might be?"

House interrupted: "You never know. If the cameras are there, we can try to shield Issy from appearing on the late news."

"I'll let everyone know. See you tomorrow."

House ended the call and went searching for his other cell phone, as he didn't want to use the 'bat phone' for calling anyone other than the three amigos. It gave him a certain sense of reassurance knowing that number was only in their hands. He finally found it in his jacket pocket but the battery was dead. The charger was on the kitchen counter, so he plugged it in and placed the call, hoping that Howard had some good news for them.

The attorney picked up on the third ring.

"House! You're a hard man to reach."

"Well, there's been a little too much media attention, so Issy and I are trying to lay low."

"That's understandable. Is Issy available? I'd like to give her an update."

"She's taking a nap right now. Can you tell me what's going on and then I'll give her the message?"

The man hesitated and then said: "Alright, but you'll need to call me back with her response. Frank and Arlene were arraigned the day after we got back. I've had Frank charged with everything I could think of, the most serious one being rape of a child under the age of twelve. Because of that particular charge, I managed to convince the judge that Frank was a danger to the community and a possible flight risk. Bail was set at one million dollars which the man didn't have, so he is sitting in the tank."

"Good. What about her mother?"

"Charged with manslaughter, failure to report child abuse and a few other things. She got a high bail too. I convinced the judge that she was a flight risk due to the fact that she allowed Frank to abuse her own daughter in exchange for keeping the circumstances of her husband's death a secret. The judge bought that too."

"You're slick, Howard."

The attorney chuckled: "I do my best. Well, Arlene went into serious DT's while in the lock-up, so she had to be hospitalized. She should be discharged back to prison later today. The evidentiary hearing is in ten days. It would be extremely helpful to the case if Issy were there."

House narrowed his eyes. "Why does she need to be there? Will she have to testify?"

"Evidentiary hearings are held in all felony cases to review probable cause. We have to show the judge that there is enough evidence to support the charges against Frank and Arlene, and since we have little physical evidence, we need Issy to testify."

"The deposition wasn't enough?"

"It was enough to get the charges filed and secure a high bail, but to make it stick, we need Issy. We can't do it without her."

"What about that Stanley guy? I thought McWhorter was going to browbeat him into testifying against Frank."

"He is going to testify for our side, but he only witnessed the one event. We need Issy's testimony about the magnitude of the abuse. Crimes committed against her at ages ten to twelve receive a harsher penalty than those crimes committed at an older age."

House let out a deep sigh and rubbed his forehead. Ten days. He didn't expect it to happen so soon. Would she be up to testifying?

Howard interrupted his thoughts. "This is why I need her response quickly. If for some reason she can't attend, I need to rethink my strategy."

"I'll talk to her, but I'm fairly sure that we'll make it. She wants them punished. When exactly do we need to be there?"

"The hearing is Tuesday, June 24th at 10AM. I'd like you to be here the day before to go over the line of questioning and to prepare Issy for what will happen in court. _And_ since you are already going to be here, if Issy is ready for it, we could arrange for the funeral."

_Talk about a double emotional whammy. _Would Issy be able to manage to testify about all the horrid details of her past _and _attend her dad's funeral in the same week?

Howard went on: "I know you're thinking that this might be too much for her and you could be right. I just wanted to throw that out there, since you are already going to be in Akron. She may want to go ahead and get this behind her."

House felt overwhelmed; he could only imagine how Issy would feel when he dumped this news on her. "I don't know. I can't answer this one for her."

"Just let her know about it. I have a funeral home and the financing all set up. Our police department put an ad in the paper and we got a boatload of donations, plus some money from the victim's advocate fund. It won't cost her a cent. We have a plot reserved in the cemetery for him and it's not too far from his parents' resting place. And if she is not ready this trip, we can postpone it until another time. I was just thinking that this might give her some partial closure about her dad's death."

"I'll tell her. She probably won't sleep much longer; I'll call you back by 4PM."

"Great. Look forward to hearing back from you."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House collapsed on the couch. He didn't really want to wake Issy up with this news; he figured he would give her another hour or so to wake up on her own. If she weren't awake by 3:15, then he would wake her up.

He went back to the task that Taub had interrupted, checking out the new links that Bonnie had sent him. One house in particular really interested him. It was located on a cul-de-sac about four miles away from the hospital. The house was a true ranch, completely built on one level and from the description seemed to be just what the doctor ordered and perhaps a bit more.

There were three bedrooms and two baths arranged in a split plan with the master suite and bath on one side of the house. The master suite contained a very large walk-in closet and the bath had both a Jacuzzi bathtub and a double shower. House could envision a lot of good times in that bathroom.

The eat-in kitchen bragged of stainless steel appliances, Thomasville wooden cabinets and granite countertops, things that were not important to House, but that Issy would probably love. There was also a separate dining room just off the kitchen. Hardwood floors ran throughout the house and there was a fireplace in the living room. Just off the living room was an additional room referred to as a 'family room'. It had been added on sometime after the original structure had been built as it jutted straight out from the living room, but the room was windowed on three sides and looked rather comfortable. The French doors from the family room opened onto a bricked patio complete with a gas barbeque grill. The home had a two-and-a-half car garage, big enough for both of their cars and his motorcycle.

There weren't any pictures of the other bedrooms, but House reasoned that they didn't matter that much anyway. He would turn one of them into an office and the other one Issy could do with whatever she wanted. However, there were two views of the backyard and that cinched it for House. The yard was a decent size, had lush green grass, several tall trees and was completely fenced in, all ready for a dog or two to move in. So far, this one was looking like number one with a bullet. He quickly emailed Bonnie and told her to make an appointment to see this one ASAP.

After sending off that message, he checked his inbox again and saw an email from an unknown G-mail address. However, it was entitled: 'Mama's got a brand new address'. So he took a chance and opened it.

It was indeed from Mom. She had set up her own private account.

_Dear Greg, _

_Your old mother is getting the hang of this Internet stuff! I went on Google and set up my own email account. I didn't even ask Uncle Dave for help. I did it all on my own._

_I hope you had a nice birthday and that Issy is feeling better. When is her graduation? I do hope that she will be well enough to attend; I know it means a lot to her. I'd like to send her a little gift if that's OK. Just let me know._

_Love, Mom_

House smiled at the computer screen. She had done it; Mom had set up her own account. That was damn impressive of her. Not that he doubted her ability to do it, but the fact that she was willing to defy John House spoke volumes to him. He wasn't losing his mother after all.

He typed back:

_Dear Mom,_

_You're not old. And I knew you could do it._

_Issy's graduation is tomorrow and she will be there. It's really nice that you want to send her a gift. You don't have to, but I'm sure that she would appreciate the gesture._

_Love, Greg_

He sent the email and then checked for a reply from Bonnie. The woman must be desperate to sell a house because the reply was already there. She informed him that she had set up an appointment to see the house on Saturday at 2PM. House groaned; didn't she remember that he couldn't make it on Saturday? He quickly replied and told her to change it to Sunday.

House had just switched screens to go back to look at the house again when he heard a sleepy voice ask: "Whatcha doing?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House was torn; on one hand he wanted to share his excitement about the house with her, but on the other hand, he also wanted it to be a surprise. What if they went to the house and it was a disappointment? Better to know for certain that it was the right one before getting her hopes up only to dash them down.

He quickly switched back to the window with his email.

"Mom has a new email account so she just sent me a message to give me the addy. She's happy that you are well enough to attend graduation."

Issy smiled and said: "That's nice." But her heart wasn't really in it. Greg had been on a different page when she walked up behind him and had quickly closed it when she had spoken. What had he been looking at and why didn't he want her to see it?

House set the laptop down on the coffee table and patted the sofa cushion next to him. "Come sit next to me, baby. Adam Howard called and I need to tell you a few things."

With trepidation, Issy came around the couch and sat down. House relayed the first half of the call to her and let that sink in.

She swallowed hard and said: "Wow, I didn't know I'd have to testify so soon."

"I didn't either, baby, but he says it's really important. Do you think you can do it?"

Issy closed her eyes, took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "I want them punished. I have to do it. There's no other way. Will you, will you come with me?"

He put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed. "Of course, I'll be there. No need to ask; that was the plan all along."

Issy snuggled deeper into his embrace. "OK, I'll do it. As long as you're with me, I'll be able to manage it."

Gently, he kissed her lips. "That's my brave girl."

They huddled together on the couch for a few minutes and then House decided to drop the other bombshell.

"There's one other thing he wanted me to ask you. When we are in Akron, _if you're ready_, we could hold a funeral for your dad. Howard's made arrangements with a funeral home and has secured financing from some policemen's fund. Things are all set to go whenever you are ready. If you don't want to do it this trip, we can postpone it until another time."

_Daddy's funeral._ Those words made it seem so final. He was really truly gone and never coming back. She'd never see his face again except in that one photo that she had. Her breath came in short gasps as she fought to keep her grief from overwhelming her again.

Finally she whispered: "I don't know. That's a lot. This will be my first trip back to Akron since I left, plus testifying in court _and_ Daddy's funeral too? I don't know if I can do all of that."

He kissed the top of her head. "We don't have to do the funeral this trip, baby. Howard said that. He was just suggesting if you wanted to do it now, we could. We can definitely wait until another trip if you'd prefer."

Issy snuggled deeper into the comfort of his embrace. "I don't know, Greg. I don't know if it would be better to get it over with, or just wait until next time. I mean, will the next trip be any easier? I'll probably be testifying every time that we go there."

"Unless we make a special trip just for the funeral."

Issy let out a small sob and he cradled her even closer to his chest.

"Shhhhh. You don't have to decide about this right now. All we need to do is call Howard back and let him know if you can testify on the 24th. Do you think you can do that?"

She nodded. "Yes, I can testify."

"OK. I'll call him back and tell him that you'll testify but that we are undecided about the funeral."

Issy pleaded: "Can we leave it open? I'd like to get through the testifying part first and then see how I feel. Would that be OK?"

"I'm sure it will be fine. After all, he works for us."

House gave her a gentle kiss and then reluctantly extracted himself from her arms. His cell was still charging in the kitchen, so he headed in there to call the attorney back. Howard was glad to hear that Issy was willing to testify and told House that it was no problem waiting until they got there to decide about that funeral.

"I only need to give the funeral director a day's notice, since most of the details are set. Issy will just need to pick out a casket and decide if she wants a minister or someone else to give a eulogy, but we can talk about that when she is ready to proceed."

House filed that information away in the back of his mind. His preference was for Issy to have the funeral on this trip and get it over with, but he needed to be patient and let her decide on this matter.

Howard went on: "There's a very nice hotel, The Quaker Square Inn, within walking distance to the courthouse and my office. I'll text you the information. Let me know when your flight arrives and I'll be happy to pick you up at the airport."

House scowled; what was walking distance to a man with two good legs could be a marathon for him. "I'll let you know; I may want to just rent a car."

"Whatever you prefer. See you next Monday. Call me if there is anything you need."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson brought Chinese food over for dinner that night. Over dumplings and fried rice, House teased him about his budding relationship with Natalie.

"She's what? Fifteen years younger than you? Are you desperately trying to hang onto your youth?"

His best friend snorted: "If _anyone_ is desperately trying to hang onto their youth, it's _you_. You think I don't know that Issy's twenty-three years younger than you?"

Not yet deterred, House asked: "You've known her for four whole days. Have you slept with her yet?"

"No, I thought it would be nice to take her on an actual _date_ first."

Issy piped in: "Are you really going to date Natalie?"

"Sure, why wouldn't I? She's nice and pretty and has a great sense of humor. And she seems to like me."

In a small voice, Issy asked: "It doesn't bother you about the dancing and stuff."

The room grew still. House shot his best friend a look and Wilson knew he had to answer this one with kid gloves.

"No, it doesn't bother me. I know that Natalie's had a rough life, but those things are in her past. Hey, my own past isn't so great. I'm a three-time loser in the marriage game. Most women would run screaming from that, and as her _friend_, I'm surprised that you wanted to set her up with me."

Issy frowned as she pondered his statement. "Well, probably you just _rushed _into things before finding out what the other person was really like. Just cuz you've been married three times doesn't make you a loser. You just haven't met the right girl yet."

In a nonchalant tone, Wilson asked: "So I'm not a total loser because I've been divorced three times? Should Natalie just accept that fact and give me a shot anyway?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Well, I hope she will, but you could see where she might judge me for my past before getting to know me."

Wilson paused to let those words sink in.

Suddenly, Issy punched him on the shoulder with her good hand. "Oh! You! You twisted this around on me."

He rubbed his bruised shoulder. "Ow! How did I do that? I was just saying that I didn't want Natalie to judge me for my past."

Issy interrupted: "Because you're saying _that_ cuz you want _me_ to believe that no one will judge me or Natalie for our pasts. That people shouldn't."

Her voice trailed off.

In his most gentle tone, Wilson went on: "Issy, I know that in your past you were forced to do things that you feel very ashamed about. And that there were other things that you weren't exactly _forced_ to do, but ended up doing because you kinda fell into it and had to make a living somehow. Those days are _over_ now, for you and for Natalie. You've both walked through hell and made it out on the other side. You're graduating tomorrow and becoming nurses. That other stuff is behind you; it's the past, just like my three failed marriages are the past. I'm interested in the present and the future and wondering if Natalie's will coincide with mine."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I just wish that she could stop dancing _now_. The future starts tomorrow with graduation and I hate that she needs to continue dancing until she can start drawing a paycheck from PPTH."

Issy said: "It does suck, but at least it's not as bad as Body Shots; you don't get _completely_ naked at King of Diamonds and you don't take guys into the back room either."

A smile slowly spread across House's face. "She could quit tonight."

Two heads whipped around to look at him. In stereo, they asked: "How?"

He reached out and caressed Issy's cheek. "Real simple, sweetheart. All you have to do is show up at graduation and the situation will take care of itself. Send her a text and tell her to hang up her G-string. She'll be throwing her pasties in the trash tonight, Wilson, unless you want her to save them for you."


	79. Chapter 79

**Chapter 79**

_Saturday June 14__th__, 2008_

The flowers started arriving around 10AM. When the first delivery arrived, House gave himself a mental kick in the ass for forgetting to get Issy a graduation present.

A white ceramic pot containing two African violet plants with deep purple flowers was the first to arrive.

Issy's eyes bugged out when she saw it. "Oh, that's so pretty. Did you send this to me?"

House shook his head: "I wish I could take credit for it, but it wasn't me. Open the card and find out."

With trembling fingers, she opened the card and read it. Tears sprang to her eyes and she wordlessly handed the card to House.

'_Dear Issy, congratulations on your graduation from nursing school. Best Wishes, Blythe House.'_

There was no mention of Dad; House was grateful for that exclusion.

Issy seemed thrilled with the gift. "This was so nice of your mother. I'm going to put them on the windowsill over here so that they can get the light."

She pulled back the drapes that had been closed since the day she came home from the hospital and the room was instantly awash in sunlight. She placed the planter on the windowsill and lifted her face to the sun. It had been more than two weeks since she had been outside in the daylight and she had almost forgotten the pleasurable feeling on sunlight on her skin. She smiled, let out a small sigh, and then hastened to throw open the other drapes and allow still more light into the room.

That small act gave the room a completely different feeling. It was as if the gloom of the last two weeks had been lifted and the sunlight signaled a bright new beginning.

House commented: "They look nice over there, sweetheart."

Issy turned to face him: "They do, don't they? And it's nice having the drapes open again. The sunlight makes me feel better."

Before House could reply, the doorbell rang again. Another mental kick and he went to answer it.

Next to arrive was a bouquet of three-dozen roses. The red, yellow and cream-colored long-stemmed blossoms were arranged attractively in a Waterford crystal vase.

Issy squealed with joy. "Are _these_ from you?"

House just shook his head.

She tore open the envelope, giggled and then read it aloud: "_Congratulations on being the only nurse that House can get along with! Cameron, Chase, Foreman, Taub, Kutner and Hadley"_

The former and current members of his team had joined forces to send an exquisite display of flowers. House was impressed by their thoughtfulness, although he would never tell them so. Instead he snarked: "Hadley? Is that Thirteen's real name?"

Issy giggled again: "I guess so. Ohmigod, these are _so_ amazing. I can't believe your fellows were so nice to get these for me."

She set the vase on the coffee table and stood back to admire it.

House was pleased to see her so happy. It had been a long time coming. Hopefully there would be no problems at graduation today and then tomorrow, if that house looked good, she'd get a surprise much better than any bouquet of flowers.

The last delivery was from Wilson. He sent her a mixed bouquet of lavender roses, red lilies, purple iris and mini calla lilies arranged in a clear glass vase.

The card read: _'Issy, Mazel tov and much happiness in the future. James Wilson.'_

Issy arranged the vase on the coffee table next to the other bouquet, but it looked overwhelmed by the larger arrangement. House solved the problem by placing a protective cloth on the piano and placing the team's gift up there. After centering Wilson's bouquet on the coffee table, Issy clapped her hands.

"Oh, this looks so nice. One day, I want to have."

She stopped short, a look of uncertainty filling her face.

House wrapped his arms around her and asked: "One day you want to have what?"

Her answer was a whisper: "A flower garden."

He kissed the top of her head: "You will, baby, you will."

+++ HOUSE MD +++

Wilson and Natalie arrived at 1:15. While Natalie oohed over the flowers, Issy hugged Wilson's neck and thanked him for the bouquet.

Natalie pulled her phone out. "James sent me two-dozen long-stemmed red roses! I took a picture with my phone. Look."

While the girls giggled over the flowers, House sidled over to Wilson and said: "Nice touch. Issy really liked them. Did you put the team up to it?"

"No, they thought of it all on their own. The kids are growing up so fast."

He jerked his chin towards the window. "Did you send her the violets?"

He shook his head: "Those are from Mom, _just_ Mom, if you get my meaning."

Wilson nodded his head in understanding. "Did you get her a gift?"

"Too preoccupied, but I hope that tomorrow I'll have something really fabulous to show her. I'm going to need you to keep her busy tomorrow afternoon while I run around with your ex-wife."

"What are you going to tell her? She's going to wonder why you are leaving her alone for the first time in over two weeks."

House bounced his cane on the floor as he thought but Wilson came up with an idea first. "Let's go out to brunch, all four of us. Then I'll slip off to the men's room and send you a text message. You act like it's from your team; there's an urgent case and you have to dash to the hospital. Pretend to take a cab to PPTH, but have Bonnie pick you up in front of the restaurant. We'll finish lunch and then keep Issy company until you call and tell me what's going on."

"That's devious, but I like it, with one slight change. I'll take a cab to meet Bonnie; I don't want to take a chance that Issy might see me getting into a strange woman's car. I don't want her getting the wrong idea."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Natalie teased: "I must say, Dr. House, you clean up rather well."

House had decided to wear his navy blue suit for the occasion, sans tie. The pale blue shirt was open at the neck and he wore his newest pair of Nikes.

He gave her a smirk: "Not bad for an old guy with a cane, huh?"

She gave him a wink: "You look pretty good to me; I can see why Issy has the hots for you."

Issy piped in: "Hey, no making moves on my guy. You've got your own dude and he looks pretty damn good himself."

Wilson was nattily dressed in a light gray suit with a striped navy tie.

House chuckled: "Wilson, we have two sexy young babes fighting over us. Is that hot or what? Hey, maybe we could have a foursome one day?"

The other three people in the room shouted in stereo: "NO!"

House shrugged: "Just a thought. Can't blame a guy for trying. Probably just as well. Issy puts me in a coma all by herself. If there were two of you, I doubt I'd live through the night."

Wilson hurried to change the subject. "Well, shall we get going?"

Issy said: "Oh, just a minute. Did you bring your camera, Wilson? Could you take a couple of pictures of my flowers for me?"

While Wilson snapped the requested photos, House made a mental note to tell Wilson to take Issy camera shopping after brunch tomorrow; that would keep her preoccupied for a while. A camera would make a nice graduation present, not nearly as nice as a house, but a decent gift all the same.

After photographing the flowers, Wilson took a few shots of House and Issy together, of Issy and Natalie together and then Issy took a few pictures of Wilson with Natalie. Finally House grumbled: "We better get this show on the road if we are going to be on time."

They drove over to the chapel on campus. House had brought his handicapped placard and stuck it on Wilson's rear view mirror so that they could get a close parking spot. They got out of the car and the girls took a minute to adjust their gowns and get their caps on straight. Wilson took another picture of them and then they headed towards the chapel. Issy slipped her hand into House's and he gave her a comforting squeeze.

"Nervous?"

Issy just nodded.

"It's your big day, the one you have been working towards all this time. Don't let anything or anyone throw you. You've made it, sweetheart."

She gave him a small smile, but didn't say anything.

As requested, his team was waiting out front near the John Witherspoon statue. They crowded around the foursome, exclaiming over House's appearance and congratulating the girls. Rachel Taub and Natalie Walsh were introduced to everyone else in the group and Issy thanked the team for the roses.

Although Wilson had predicted that Kutner would be dressed in a tuxedo, the young doctor was wearing a black suit, jazzed up with a Star Trek tie. He said: "Chase and I scoped the place out rather well. We didn't find anyone who looked like a reporter or news photographer. There are a whole lot of nuns though."

Chase rolled his eyes. "I hate nuns."

Natalie giggled: "Get your knuckles slapped with a ruler in school, did you?"

Chase grimaced and nodded.

House said: "Well, just because you didn't see any, doesn't mean that they aren't here. Let's head over to the chapel, pack style, keep them from shooting directly at Issy if they are here."

The group surrounded Issy and House on all four sides and they made their way over the grounds to the chapel. House glanced from side to side, but didn't see anyone that he thought was suspicious looking. Just as they were climbing the steps, and House was thinking that they had safely made it, there was a loud shriek.

All heads turned in that direction. Two identical blondes in cap and gown were staring at the group. One twin had her mouth was open in mute surprise while the other one waved her hands frantically.

"What are _you_ doing here? I thought they were going to ban you from attending graduation."

House squeezed Issy's hand: "Show 'em how tough you are."

She put on a brave smile and said: "Why would they do that? I fulfilled all the necessary requirements for graduation, so of course, I'm here. I'm so sorry that you weren't expecting me, but isn't it _great_ that we are all graduating together?"

The twins turned to face each other, and one of them muttered: "Oh, shit."

Natalie sauntered right up to them and jabbed Ashley on the shoulder. "Your little betting pool didn't work out so well, did it? You are going to have to pay out a _lot_ of money when this ceremony is over. And don't even _think _about running out without paying up."

Chase spoke up: "That's right. I put five hundred on Issy to attend, so that's twenty-five big ones that you owe me."

Natalie squealed: "Oh, you got in on the bet, too? I thought it was just amongst us students."

Foreman rolled his eyes: "Anytime that there is a bet going on at PPTH, you can rest assured that Chase is in on it. I put in a hundred myself, so I'm expecting five big ones afterwards."

Taub, Thirteen and Kutner each chimed in with their own claims. Just in this small group, the twins were going to have to fork out a whopping seventy grand in payouts.

The twins went as white as a sheet of paper. One of them muttered: "Daddy's going to kill us."

The other one nodded: "We are so screwed."

House smiled: "You sure are."

Just then Ms. Lawson appeared and clapped her hands. "Graduates! Line up in alphabetical order please. Guests, please take your seats. We'll be starting in five minutes."

House bent down and kissed Issy's cheek and then he murmured in her ear: "I'm so proud of you."

Issy beamed from ear to ear as her 'cheering squad' headed inside. She easily found her spot in line between LaTonya Wagner and Natalie Walsh. As they waited for the procession to begin, LaTonya, a tall, attractive African-American who had endured her own verbal assaults from the twins, turned around and said: "Thanks for showing up. I put fifty on you to attend."

Issy was surprised. She never dreamed that she would have the support of some of her classmates. "Really? You did?"

LaTonya nodded: "You're a tough cookie. You saved those girls and survived a kidnapping. I knew you wouldn't let some stupid publicity stunt keep you from graduation. Those damn stuck-up twins probably paid some reporter to do that stunt."

Maria Velez, the girl in front of LaTonya turned around and said: "That's what I thought too. I put fifty on you too, Issy. I can't wait to see what happens to them when _Daddy_ finds out they have to pay out all this money!"

The two girls in line behind Natalie also chimed in. Issy was happily surprised at their support. She grinned as she walked into the chapel; the twins were going to be out a whole lot of money by the time this day was over.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Sophia and Robin had saved two rows of seats so there was no mad scramble to find spots. Naturally House took the aisle and Wilson took the spot next to him, his camera at the ready. He snapped shots of the girls as they walked up the aisle, both of them beaming from ear to ear.

Wilson leaned into House and whispered: "Seems like Issy got over her nerves. She looks like she is enjoying herself now."

House nodded, not wanting to break the spell. He settled back to wait; it was going to take a while to get to the W's.

After marching up the aisle, the graduates filled in the first five rows of seats on the left hand side of the aisle. When the dispensing of diplomas began, they were to get up row-by-row and head to the left hand side of the stage where they would wait until their name was called. At that time, the graduate was to walk to the center of the stage where the Dean was standing, accept the diploma with their left hand, shake Sister Mary Paul's hand with their right and move off the stage.

Once the graduates were seated and the audience had settled down, the Dean walked to center stage and addressed the crowd: "Good afternoon. I'm Sister Mary Paul, the Dean of the Nursing School and I'd like to welcome all of you to our 2008 Spring Graduation Ceremony. We're very proud of all of our graduates and I know you are anxious to receive your diplomas, but first I'd like to introduce Father Matthew O'Reilly who will give a blessing for our students."

A tall, thin man of about 40 wearing the usual clerical collar approached the microphone. House groaned inwardly; he was going to be forced to sit and listen while this guy spouted off some words about God and other junk that he didn't believe in. The things he had to do for the woman he loved. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Vicodin, popping one into his mouth.

Wilson hissed: "Was that necessary right now? Are you in that much pain?"

"That was a preemptive strike. When that guy starts talking, I _will_ be in pain."

Father Matthew made the Sign of the Cross and all the Catholics in the audience, including Chase, followed. The priest then led everyone in the Our Father prayer. House snuck peeks at Chase who was making all the proper prayer responses and vowed to tease him about that later.

After that prayer was finished, Father Matthew went on: "Dear Father, please bless these graduates as they begin their new lives, tending to the sick and injured. Help them to faithfully serve mankind by their comfort and care. Let your hand guide them in this most important work and may they always trust you to be their teacher and confidant. Amen."

During the prayer, House studied the dean of the college. She didn't look like a nun. He had expected to see her appear in full habit, like Sister Mary Augustine, a nun that he had treated a couple of years back. Instead she was wearing a gray business suit with a skirt that came to mid-calf, thick hose and sensible shoes. Her veil was short; it barely grazed her shoulders and she wore thick glasses too. Despite the more modern look, she had a no-nonsense air about her and House could understand why Issy would be afraid of the Dean's ability to stop her graduation due to a violation of the morals clause.

When the prayer was finished, the priest led everyone in a hymn and then he relinquished the podium back to Sister Mary Paul. After a few words about the moral duties of a nurse, she said: "And now, we'd like to award diplomas to our new graduates. Ms. Lawson, if you will please call out their names."

The first row stood up and made their way to the left side of the stage and the roll call started.

"Lindsay Anderson."

"Theresa Baker."

"Jeremy Baldwin."

House watched with bored indifference as Ms Lawson ran through the alphabet, although he was pleased to notice that the twins didn't seem too happy as they accepted their diplomas from the Dean. He wondered if losing all that money had something to do with it and hoped that he'd get to see the look on their father's face when he found out how much money his precious little daughters had lost.

"Maria Velez."

House was startled out of his mild stupor by a large Hispanic family cheering wildly for their graduate. It was almost Issy's turn now. He sat up straighter and watched the stage.

"LaTonya Wagner."

Issy was next. He could see her in the corner of the stage and to his dismay, she looked nervous. It was almost over; how could she be nervous now?

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Natalie whispered: "You're next!"

Issy took a deep breath, hoping to calm her nerves. "I know."

"Don't be so nervous, silly. Just walk across the stage, grab the diploma, shake her hand and make a beeline for the exit. I'll be right behind you."

Issy nodded, although she still feared that something would happen at the last minute to snatch her victory away. Would the Dean recognize her face and deny her diploma in front of the whole audience? Natalie would just think that she was being silly if she vocalized those fears to her. She bit her lip as she waited those final seconds.

Finally the moment of truth arrived. Ms. Lawson called out: "Isabelle Walker."

A roar rose up from the crowd. Issy peeked out into the audience and saw House, Wilson, Cuddy and all the rest standing and cheering for her. Tears pooled in her eyes. She wasn't alone; her boyfriend had insured that she had a whole gang to celebrate her big event.

Natalie gave her a little push and hissed: "Go on!"

Ms. Lawson beamed at her and Issy smiled back. Remembering her instructions, she headed across the stage towards the Dean. The cheers got louder. Issy could hear Natalie hooting behind her and some of her classmates were standing to applaud her also. Issy was so overwhelmed with emotion that her hands started to shake.

The Dean was smiling at her. Issy stepped up and accepted her diploma into her left hand, hanging onto it tightly despite the cast. Just as she started to thrust out her right hand for the Dean to shake, the old nun did something that no one expected. Sister Mary Paul wrapped Issy up in a big hug. In the midst of the embrace, she whispered: "I'm so proud of you, my child."

Overwhelmed with emotion, Issy managed to whisper back: "Thank you, Sister Mary Paul."

With her arm still around Issy's shoulder, Sister Mary Paul turned to the audience and said: "I don't usually single out individual students, but after the brave deed that this young lady did, I think she deserves some special recognition. On behalf of all the faculty at the college, we would like to express our pride in having Isabelle Walker as one of our esteemed alumni."

The applause was almost deafening. Issy was completely blown away that everyone was clapping for _her._ It seemed as if they had forgotten all about the scandalous article about her stripper days and only remembered her role in rescuing the Cooper kids. Needing reassurance, she scanned the audience until she found him. His smile filled her with happiness and calmed her at the same time. When their eyes met, his smile broadened and he blew her a kiss. She couldn't wait to get off of this stage and fall into his arms.

As the applause died away, Sister Mary Paul squeezed her shoulders and said: "Have a happy life, my child."

This time, Issy managed to keep her emotions under control as she replied: "Thank you, Sister. Thank you very much."


	80. Chapter 80

**Chapter 80**

**A/N: I meant to give credit in the last chapter. My friend and fellow fanfic writer Laniki helped me out with the Catholic graduation ceremony. I couldn't have done it without her. A big Thank you!**

Issy had barely made it off the stage when Ms. Lawson called out Natalie's name. She turned around and clapped for her friend, pleased to see that her 'gang' was also cheering for her. Natalie had a proud smile on her face when she walked across the stage and accepted the diploma. On her way off the stage, she pumped a fist into the air, generating more cheers from her fellow students.

Once she met up with Issy, she grabbed her and squealed: "We did it! We did it!"

Issy replied: "I know, I can't believe it. It's finally over. After all that work."

"It was worth it. Come on! Let's go find our guys and tackle the twins for our money!"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

First they had to file back to their seats and sit through one more prayer. After the final blessing, the graduates stood up and threw their caps into the air. The place was pandemonium, and it was difficult for House to keep track of pertinent people. He gave Kutner a nudge: "Make sure that the twins don't escape without paying up."

He gave his boss an evil grin. "I'm on it."

Taking Chase and Foreman with him, the three doctors went off to guard the exit.

It took several minutes, but finally Issy and Natalie fought their way through the crowd. House wrapped her up in a tight embrace and whispered in her ear. "You did it, baby. I'm so proud of you."

Issy was still stunned by the events of the last hour. "Did you hear what the Dean said? I'm an _esteemed_ alumnus! Can you believe it?"

"Smart lady; she recognizes an amazing woman when she sees one."

House gave her a kiss and then allowed everyone else to congratulate her. Issy was overwhelmed with hugs and congratulations from the whole gang. Even Dr. Cuddy gave her a hug. Once the crowd had thinned a bit, they slowly made their way to the door.

The twins had tried to sneak out without fulfilling their financial obligations, but they were not successful. Chase, Kutner and Foreman prevented them from leaving, and were in the midst of a loud argument when the rest of the group arrived.

Upon spying his boss, Kutner announced: "You were right, House, they tried to sneak out without paying up."

One of the twins protested: "We weren't trying to sneak out, but come on, we don't have that kind of money on us. You'll have to wait until Monday when we can get to the bank."

Chase huffed: "Yeah, right. We weren't born yesterday. That's no way to hold a pool. You have to have the cash to pay up immediately or be prepared to deal with the consequences."

A new voice butted into the conversation. This one belonged to a tall, dark-haired man, dressed in Armani. The well-groomed blonde on his arm resembled the twins so closely that it was very obvious who these intruders were.

"Consequences? What the hell are you talking about and why the hell are you bothering my daughters?"

Chase was thrilled to give the father the background info about the twins' behavior concerning Issy's harassment, the plot to smear her character and the bet.

He turned to face his daughters. "Is this true? You harassed this young woman and for what purpose?"

Ashley whined: "But Daddy, she's just a hooker working her way through nursing school. Dr House hired her and passed her off as his girlfriend. She."

Her father interrupted her. "Dr. House? Did you say Dr. House?"

The twin rolled her eyes. "Yes, Daddy, Dr. House is the one who."

Waving a hand to silence his daughter, her father turned his back on her and faced the group. "Which one of you is Dr. House?"

Stepping in front of Issy to protect her from who-knew-what, House responded: "I'm Dr. House."

The man stuck out his hand. "Charles Dalton. You successfully treated my sister-in-law, Margo Dalton. No one else could figure out what was wrong with her except for you. Thank you for saving her life."

House could never remember the names of his patients; there was no chance that he knew which patient Dalton was talking about. So he pretended to know, stuck out his hand to shake and replied: "No problem. Happy to help."

"Now what is this half-assed tale that my girls have been accused of?"

House reiterated what Chase had already told the man. "For some unknown reason, your daughters have teased and harassed my girlfriend for the last two years. Issy helped to rescue two little girls from their pervert father, and then she was kidnapped and injured by him. There was a lot of publicity surrounding this, some of it was true and some of it wasn't. Your daughters picked up on a particularly vile set of lies and chose to help spread it around, cumulating in starting a fifty-to-one bet that she would not show up at graduation because of it. Obviously Issy showed up at graduation and now your daughters are trying to get out of paying everyone what they are owned."

He turned to his daughters and roared: "Is this true? You set up a betting pool? You know how I feel about gambling after Uncle George lost everything he owned on the ponies! How could you do this? And how could you treat this poor girl so badly?"

The girls tried to explain themselves but he shook his head to silence them. "We'll talk more at home. You two are in a lot of trouble. I'm going to pay these people now, but you are going to have to go to work and pay me back every last cent."

The twins howled in protest: "Work? But Daddy!"

"Yes, _work._ That's why I sent you to school. You're nurses now and you will _work_ as nurses. We'll talk more at home. Right now, I need to know who you owe money to."

Ashley reluctantly pulled out the list and handed it to her father. He grunted in disgust as he perused the list. "I can't believe you did this. You owe these people almost one hundred thousand dollars! It's going to take you a very long time to pay me back."

Ignoring his daughters' groans, Dalton whipped out his checkbook. "I certainly don't have this kind of money on me; I hope everyone will be satisfied with a check."

People queued up for payment. Dalton took care of Natalie, Chase, and the rest of the team first, so that they could leave. The rest of the nursing students were still lined up, waiting for payment, as they walked away.

Natalie stared at the check and crowed with glee: "This is totally the best day of my life. I've finally graduated and I have a check for twenty-five grand in my hands! Of course, 75% of that is yours, House, but still, it is nice to look at a check of _that amount_ made out to _me_."

House chuckled: "I'd take it to the bank first thing Monday morning and make sure it doesn't bounce."

Natalie snickered: "It better not. I'm planning on living off this money until I get my first paycheck from PPTH. Did you _see_ the look on Daddy Dalton's face? He is _really_ pissed off at his 'little angels'. I think he really meant it when he said he wanted them to work it off. Can you see it, Issy? The little princesses getting their hands dirty? I wonder if they will find a job at PPTH?"

Cuddy snorted. "No way. I don't want to deal with them. Let them go over to Princeton General and find a job. I only want nurses that _really_ want to be nurses."

Natalie smirked: "Good thing you hired me and Issy, then."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The gang offered to take the graduates out for a celebratory drink, but Issy begged off, citing fatigue. She graciously thanked everyone for attending, appreciative of the effort that they had put out for her, but the outing had taken its toll on her and she felt like a nap was in order. Naturally the group understood; they expressed their well wishes and said good-bye.

When the four of them were back in Wilson's Volvo, House put his arm around Issy and said: "We'll be home soon. We'll both take a little nap and then we can celebrate later on tonight. OK?"

Issy nodded but then said: "You guys didn't have to bail on the drinks because of me. You could just drop me off and then go over there."

Natalie looked over her left shoulder and replied: "Naw, it wouldn't feel right to celebrate without you being there."

Wilson piped in: "How about the four of us going out to brunch tomorrow? _The Witherspoon Grill_ does a great Sunday brunch. I'll call ahead and make reservations. Eleven-thirty, OK?"

House quickly agreed. "Sounds good to me."

Wilson smirked: "Any mention of food sounds good to you."

Issy looked out of the window and noticed that they were just around the corner from PPTH. "Hey, let's stop and pick up my car."

House frowned: "What do you need your car for? You're not allowed to drive yet."

"I know. I just thought we could take it home so that when I'm able to drive again that it's _there_ and not all the way over _here_ in the parking garage. You could drive us home, Greg, and then Wilson and Natalie could go on their way."

Wilson shot House a questioning look; the older man pondered for a minute and then shrugged. "I don't see why you need to get it now, but OK. I'll drive your car home."

Issy directed them up to the fourth level of the garage where she had parked her car. Being Saturday, that level was practically empty. Issy's car stood alone at the far end of the row. As they moved closer to it, House squinted and tilted his head in concentration. Something about the car looked askew.

It became plainly evident as they drew nearer. The car had been vandalized. All four tires had been slashed and the windows broken. The hood was up and various engine parts were lying strewn around on the ground. Someone had taken a knife to the seats and the stuffing had been tossed about like handfuls of cotton balls. The roof looked like it had been bashed in with a sledgehammer. Worst of all, at least in House's mind, someone had spray-painted the word 'whore' across the trunk and the sides of the car.

Wilson exclaimed: "Son of a bitch!"

He went into what House referred to as his _'Super Jimmy'_ mode. After throwing the Volvo into 'park', he got out of the car, while dialing a number on his cell.

"Security? This is Dr. James Wilson. I'm in the fourth floor of the parking garage and you need to send someone up here ASAP. My friend's car has been vandalized."

Gesticulating with his free hand, he walked around the car as he talked and then pulled out his camera and started snapping photos. The rest of them slowly climbed out of the car to survey the damage.

Natalie gasped: "Ohmigod! Who would do such an awful thing?"

Issy was stunned. Tears flooded her eyes as she whimpered: "Why? Why would they do this?"

House groaned inwardly. Issy didn't need this last slap in the face.

"This is probably the work of the bitchy twins. Forget about the car, sweetheart. It's toast. We'll get you a new one."

Issy replied in a plaintive tone. "I don't have any money for a new car, Greg."

He put his arm around her. "Yes, you do. First off, you've got five grand in the bank from that reward."

Natalie squealed: "Oh, Iss, I saw an ad for a used Civic for $4600. You could buy that outright."

House scowled: "Screw the used cars. We'll get you a brand new car. Between the five grand you have in the bank and that bet money, that's a decent wad of cash to sink into a car and I'll make up the difference."

Issy shook her head. "Greg, I can't ask you to do that."

"I didn't hear you asking, babe. I'm offering."

"But that bet money is _your _money. You don't have to spend it on me."

He nuzzled her cheek and whispered: "Like there is anyone else that I want to spend it on? It will be fun getting you your first new car."

Her face expressed doubt and House didn't want to have an emotional discussion in front of an audience. In a louder voice, he said: "You start thinking about what you want and then we'll start looking at cars. I could _so_ see you in a BMW convertible."

Issy's eyes widened: "Are you kidding? That's hugely expensive."

"But you'd look gorgeous driving it, baby."

Wanting to get out of the garage before Issy had a complete breakdown, he called to Wilson: "What the hell are you doing? Let's get out of here."

Wilson closed his phone and slipped it back into this pocket. "Taking photos for evidence. Campus security is on their way."

Issy shook her head. "I can't claim it on insurance. I only have the barest coverage on the car and it doesn't include acts of vandalism."

"We'll just have it towed away. Do you have anything that you want in the car? Any CD's or anything else?"

"There's a tool box in the trunk, if it's still there."

The trunk had also been smashed. When Campus Security arrived, they ended up prying it open with a crowbar. The toolbox was rescued and secured in Wilson's trunk. Security said that they would take care of the police report and deal with having the car towed away.

Issy stared forlornly out of the back window as they drove away. "That was my first car."

House put his arm around her. "I know. Everyone has a sentimental attachment to their first car. It sucks that you have to end this special relationship in such a horrible manner, but your car wouldn't want you to mourn too long. It would want you to dry your eyes and move up to something flashier, like a BMW convertible."

Wilson and Natalie snorted; even Issy rolled her eyes. "_The car_ doesn't want me to mourn? I can't believe you said that."

House merely shrugged and gave her that little smile, the one that lit up his eyes.

"You're just trying to make me feel better, aren't you?"

In a faux shocked voice, House replied: "_Moi?_ Would I do such a thing?"

Issy rested her head against his shoulder. In a soft voice, that only he could hear, she said: "Yes, I think you would."

++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

For the rest of the day, House did his best to make her feel better. After Wilson and Natalie dropped them off, he immediately led her to the bedroom. He helped her out of her clothes, kissing and licking each newly uncovered spot of skin. Once Issy was totally naked, he quickly removed his own clothes and joined her in bed. The complete skin-on-skin contact heightened his arousal, but he managed to keep himself in check as he pleasured Issy with his mouth and his hands. His tongue took her to the brink of overwhelming pleasure time and time again, until he finally allowed her to fall over the edge, screaming out his name in the throes of passion.

After she came down from the fabulous high, it was his turn. Her lips and tongue sent Mt. Gregory to a new pinnacle of pleasure. As much as he tried to hold back and prolong the delicious sensations, that little tongue trick of hers sent him orbiting into outer space, moaning her name as he came. Completely sated, he pulled her into his arms with a deep sigh. They shared a few gentle kisses and then drifted off to sleep.

When they awoke from their nap, they threw on just enough clothes to be decent for the pizza delivery guy. A sausage and mushroom pie was on the menu for tonight and House was pleased that despite today's earlier trauma, that Issy still had an appetite and managed to eat three pieces. She was getting close to matching him slice for slice again.

After dinner was consumed, and they were quietly enjoying a Grolsch while listening to Dave Matthews, House brought out his laptop and powered it up.

"What kind of cars do you like?"

Issy shrugged: "I never really thought about it. To me, a car just provides necessary transportation."

"Well, what about your old car did you like, and dislike?"

Issy laughed: "It was old. The heater didn't work very well and the tires were too slick for icy roads in the winter."

"OK, I see all-wheel drive in your future. Maybe some heated seats. That would be nice in the winter."

"_You_ should get yourself a fancy new car with heated seats."

"Maybe I will before winter gets here, but right now we are looking for you. What else would you like in a car?"

Issy took a long swallow of her beer as she pondered the question. "A roomy interior. I want to be able to transport big dogs in the car without feeling like they are crowding over into the front seat with me. And if I ever get a house with a flower garden, I want to be able to transport bags of potting soil and plants home without difficulty."

House browsed through a few websites. "What about a SUV?"

Issy wrinkled her nose. "They are kinda high off the ground for dogs to jump in."

"OK, maybe a crossover."

They checked out different car models for a while until Issy saw the Subaru Outback wagon.

"Oh, I like that. It's a car, not a SUV, but it's so roomy. The dogs could ride in the back and I could haul a lot of cargo in it."

"It's got all-wheel drive and heated seats for the winter too."

It wasn't exactly the type of car that House would have picked out, but the more they looked at photos and specs, the more excited Issy got.

"Tell ya what, baby. After brunch tomorrow, we'll just go to the Subaru lot and check them out. See if the real thing lives up to expectations."

"OK. That sounds like a great idea."

He needed to check his email one more time to make sure that things were set with Bonnie, but he didn't want Issy to see what he was doing. He waggled his empty bottle at her and asked: "How 'bout another one?"

She smiled: "Sure. I'll be right back."

As she walked away, he quickly clicked over to his email. Sure enough, there was a new message in his inbox from Bonnie, confirming the details for tomorrow. He would cab over to her office at 1PM after Wilson sends him the fake emergency page from his team. He sent a quick reply, affirming that he would meet her at the designated time and then closed that page. He wasn't quite fast enough. As Issy returned from the kitchen with fresh beers, she watched as he sent an email and then quickly closed the page. _Who was he emailing? What was he doing that was so secretive? _

She plopped down on the couch next to him and extended one of the beers towards him. He leaned forward, stealing a kiss, before taking the bottle from her.

"Aside from the car, it was a decent day, right? Flowers, graduation, stealing money from the twins, pizza, lovemaking, although not necessarily in that order."

She couldn't help, but smile back at him. It had been a good day; after all the hard work, she had finally graduated from college. One exam left to go and she would be a full-fledged Registered Nurse. All the other things that he mentioned had been wonderful too. She just had this nagging doubt in her mind about his on-line activities.

Pushing that thought aside for now, she snuggled up next to him. "It was more than just a decent day, Greg. It's on my Top Ten list."

House grinned; if everything worked out like he hoped, tomorrow could end up being number one on that list.


	81. Chapter 81

**Chapter 81**

_Sunday June 15__th__, 2008_

"Oh, Greg, they have fried calamari!"

Wilson raised one eyebrow: "You want that for _brunch_?"

Issy nodded. "I love fried calamari."

House agreed. "Me too. We'll get that for starters and I want steak and eggs. What about you, babe?"

"I want the sausage and mushroom omelet."

Natalie decided on the Eggs Benedict while Wilson went for the Egg White Omelet.

House scoffed at him. "Should have known you'd pick the healthiest thing on the menu. Your arteries won't clog from just one brunch, you know."

When the waitress took Wilson's order, he added a side of bacon at the last minute. House nodded approvingly. "Now, you're living. I'll even let you have one or two calamari."

After the waitress walked away, Issy said: "Natalie, I didn't get a chance to ask you. Did you really quit Friday night?"

Her friend nodded: "I _sure_ did. My boss was OK with it too. It's not like it was a surprise; he knew it was coming and I think he's used to having girls quit at the end of the school year. I tell you, it was a great feeling walking out that door and knowing that I don't ever have to wear those pasties again."

House smirked: "Now you can make Wilson wear them."

Natalie giggled and covered her eyes: "Don't put that visual in my head again!"

An evil grin worked its way across House's face. "But you kept them, didn't you?"

Natalie admitted: "I haven't thrown them out yet."

House dramatically put his hand over his eyes. "I'm picturing gold sequins with little gold tassels."

Natalie shook her head. "You are _so_ off base. The sequins are silver and black, with black fringes on the bottom and little peacock feathers on the top."

That description put quite the visual in the guys' mind. Both sets of male eyes dropped to Natalie's chest; they stayed there until Natalie cleared her throat and then they quickly looked away.

House managed to choke out: "Oh, yeah, I could see _those_ on Wilson. It'd be a great look for him."

Issy rolled her eyes. It was definitely time to change the subject. "So what did you guys do last night after you dropped us off?"

Wilson shook his head to clear his mind of the vision of Natalie wearing those pasties; then he reached across the table and picked up her hand. "We went on a date."

The waitress set down the plate of fried calamari and cocktail sauce. House reached forward, snagged one and popped it in his mouth before commenting. "A dinner and dancing, naked and sweaty kind of date?"

Wilson shot House a look, dipped a calamari ring into the cocktail sauce and replied: "Dinner and dancing. No naked and sweaty. It was our _first_ date, after all."

House smirked inwardly; Wilson remembered the bet after all. "Ah, yes, date _numero uno_. So, where did you kids go?"

"Tre Piani."

Natalie sighed: "It was really nice. We ate in their back patio area and it was so wonderful to be eating out under the stars like that."

House shrugged: "You can do that at the Taco Shack too. It's _all_ outside seating there."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "I wanted to take Natalie somewhere classier than the Taco Shack."

House stuffed two calamari rings in his mouth at the same time. "But they have the best steak tacos in town. Plus where else can you go and have yesterday's newspaper for a place mat?"

The conversation continued in the same teasing vein all through their meal. At exactly 12:45PM, Wilson excused himself and headed towards the men's room. Once he was out of sight, he pulled out his phone and started typing the requested text message. House was purposefully carrying the 'bat phone' so that there was no chance that Issy would recognize a ring tone from Wilson on House's usual phone. After he sent the message, he took a moment to wash his hands and then headed back to the table.

As he sat back down, he asked: "So, who's up for dessert?"

House shook his head. "I'm going to have to pass. Just got a text from Taub. We have a patient. Some big donor and Cuddy insists that I come in and have a look-see at him personally. You guys stay and have dessert; I'll just catch a cab over there."

Issy said: "We could just pay the bill and drive you there."

"Naw, baby, stay and have dessert. Plus they have those great coffee cocktails that you like too. Remember the first time we came here and you had your first 'Witherspoon'?"

She nodded and said softly: "I remember."

For a moment, House thought that her tone sounded rather wistful, and he wondered what that was all about. But he need to brush it aside for now so that he could get to his appointment. If all worked out, he would be making her very happy later on today.

"Hey, I have an idea. After you finish dessert and coffee, why don't you head over to the Subaru lot and start looking at cars? I'll try to make it quick and then join you over there."

Wilson took the hint and jumped on the bandwagon. "Great idea. Just call as you're leaving and we'll let you know where we are."

House nodded, gave Issy a kiss on the cheek and said: "See you soon."

He hurriedly limped toward the street, flagged down a cab and climbed in.

Issy watched him go. When he was out of sight, she turned back to Wilson and asked: "So where is he really going?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Wilson sputtered: "To the hospital. Where else?"

"I don't know. That's why I'm asking you."

A worried crease appeared in Wilson's brow. "Issy, he just told you. He has a patient."

Issy tilted her head and stared at him for a long moment. "How long have you known Greg?"

"Um, fifteen, sixteen years. Why?"

"You've known him _that_ long and yet you can't tell when he's lying?"

Natalie gasped: "Lying? He's not really going to the hospital?"

Wilson tried desperately not to stutter. "What makes you think he's lying?"

Issy pointed to the corner of her right eye. "He gets a tiny tic here when he's lying."

Filing that information away for future use, Wilson easily slid a baffled look on his face. "Really?"

Issy let out a deep sigh. "Yes, Wilson, _really_. Now tell me where he's going. It's a little too much of a coincidence to me that you were in the men's room when he got that text."

He couldn't help sputtering this time. "Are you s-saying that I had s-something to do with that text message? Why are you so s-suspicious anyway? He loves you; he wouldn't do anything to hurt you."

"And _you_ get easily flustered when _you're_ trying to lie."

Turning to Natalie, she said: "Remember that for the future."

Her friend nodded: "Already seen it in action and sometimes he blushes too."

The girls quietly stared at Wilson while the man squirmed in his seat. After a few long moments, Natalie asked: "James, where is House really going?"

Wilson closed his eyes and shook his head: "I can't tell you."

Issy let out a little cry and covered her mouth with her hand. Natalie put a comforting arm around her shoulder and demanded: "Why not?"

Wilson replied: "Because I promised."

In an anguished voice, Issy asked: "He's found someone else, hasn't he?"

Wilson whipped around to face Issy and stated emphatically. "No, definitely not. I don't know where you got that idea, but you can put that completely out of your mind. House loves _you_ and only you."

"Then what's he doing with all these secret emails and quickly changing screens on his computer when I walk back into the room? What am I supposed to think of that? He is keeping something from me."

Wilson took a deep breath and tried to steady himself. House had only been gone five minutes; how could this have taken a turn for the worse so quickly?

Natalie said in a soft questioning voice: "James?"

He reached across the table and squeezed Issy's hand. "Look, I can't tell you. It's a surprise. I promise you that it is a good one, but House wants to tell you himself. He is trying to work out the details now, but I _promise you_, Issy, if it all falls into place, you will _love_ it."

The girls still looked doubtful. Wilson plowed on. "Let's just have some dessert and coffee and then head over to the car lot. All your questions will be answered by the end of the afternoon, I promise."

Wilson waved his hand to get the waitress's attention, and then asked for dessert menus. House had better like the place that Bonnie was showing him this afternoon; otherwise he was going to need a really good explanation for his behavior.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

While Wilson was trying to convince the girls of House's good intentions, House was having his own troubles with Bonnie. She had insisted on taking him to another house first, so that he would have one for comparison.

Her reasoning was: "No one buys the first house that they see."

House snarled: No one? Did you read that in 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not' or do you have actual facts to back that up?"

She ignored him and led him to the front door. As soon as they stepped into the foyer and he saw the sight before his eyes, he growled: "What is it about the statement 'no stairs' that you fail to understand?"

A long run of stairs led up to a second story.

Bonnie shrugged him off: "The master bedroom and everything important is downstairs. I thought this one might be acceptable since it is only the other two bedrooms and an extra bath that are upstairs."

"Ever think I might want one as an office? Or just be able to see _every_ room in _my_ house?"

She waved her hands in a placating manner. "OK, OK, you don't like this one. Let me just point out a few features for comparison and then we'll go see the one that you really liked."

"That one is next, right? Immediately next?"

"Yes."

Bonnie babbled on about kitchen cabinets and appliances, but House just tuned her out. He gave her exactly two minutes to discuss the highlights of this inappropriate house and then he herded her towards the door.

Finally they pulled up in front of the house that he most wanted to see. The house was indeed a true ranch. He had to walk up three steps to enter the front door, but that was manageable.

Bonnie babbled on: "The couple that owns this house, well, the wife just died, that's why it's being sold. She had MS and that's why they built the home all on one level. There's no more than three steps anywhere on the property."

Jersey's crappiest realtor was right about that. Aside from the front entrance, there was just one step down to the garage and two steps down to the patio. Everything else was level.

House took a good look around. The place was immaculate. Even the garage was spotless. There was a decent size laundry room just off the garage and Bonnie assured him that the state-of-the-art front-loading Whirlpool washer and dryer were being sold with the house. The kitchen was huge, the stainless steel appliances glistened, and the window over the kitchen sink looked out over the back yard. House could easily picture Issy bustling around in this space, baking him cookies and keeping an eye on the dogs in the backyard.

The master suite definitely lived up to expectation. The room was huge with a walk-in closet almost the size of his current kitchen. The attached bathroom looked just as good as it did in the photos. House couldn't wait for Issy to see the tub. He envisioned many good times in there.

He wandered into the living room and looked it over carefully. It was definitely spacious enough for his piano, in fact combined with the family room; his entire apartment would probably fit in these two rooms. They were definitely going to need to buy more furniture.

The other side of the house had two bedrooms with a bathroom in between them. The back bedroom, which overlooked the backyard, was the larger of the two and House immediately pegged that one for the office. He could put several of his bookcases in there and get a large desk. Issy could turn the other bedroom into her own private domain.

Finally he wandered through the family room, out the French doors and onto the bricked patio. The yard wasn't huge, but hiring a lawn maintenance service was definitely in their future. They would also need someone to dig out the driveway after a snowfall, but House wasn't concerned; he could afford those services. Bonnie assured him that the yard was completely fenced in and that the barbeque grill was fully functional. As he rounded the corner of the house, he saw the final item that clinched it for him. Nestled into a neat corner formed by the fence and the house, were three rose bushes. There were a multitude of unopened pink buds and two perfect flowers on the bushes. Here was the flower garden that Issy longed for.

Bonnie said quietly: "The wife used to love her roses. Her husband would push her out here in her wheelchair so that she could tend to them. He expressly told me that he hoped that house would be bought by someone who would cherish them as much as she did."

House replied: "If he gives me a good deal on this place, he just might get what he wants."

The asking price was actually very reasonable; House didn't even see the need to negotiate. If Issy liked it, he was buying it.

He flipped open his phone. "I'm having your ex bring Issy over right now. She needs to see this place. Oh and by the way, he has his current squeeze with him too. Hope that won't _bother_ you."

Bonnie merely rolled her eyes at the man who had helped to break up her marriage. The commission was going to be barely enough compensation for having to put up with House again.


	82. Chapter 82

**Chapter 82**

It had been a struggle getting through dessert and coffee. As delicious as the apple-caramel bread pudding was, it sat like a rock in Issy's stomach. All she could do was wonder what Greg was doing and why he needed to keep this secret from her. Her mind could only come up with worst-case scenarios; he was ending their relationship, he was finding her a new place to live because he'd found a new girlfriend. Her mind spun with endless undesirable scenes, until finally she pushed her half-finished dessert away.

Trying very hard to be social, Wilson inquired: "Full?"

"I can't eat anymore. I just want to go home."

Wilson paused with the coffee cup halfway to his lips. "But I told House I'd take you car shopping."

"What's the point? I don't have the money for a new car, so there's no reason to go looking at them."

"He said he was going to."

Issy waved her hand to silence him. "Yeah, he said, _whatever_. I don't know what he's doing _now_, so how can I plan on him helping me with _anything_ in the future? It's best if I just figure out things on my own. I'm used to it and it's better than depending on other people who will just let you down."

Natalie asked: "Do you really think House is going to let you down?"

"_I don't know_. I don't know what to think."

Wilson said: "Issy, don't jump to conclusions just yet. Give House a chance to show you what he has planned. Just give it this afternoon, OK?"

Issy thought for a moment. _'Don't jump to conclusions'_. Last night she and Greg had just finished reading Chapter 13 in _'The_ _Phantom Tollbooth'_. At the end of that chapter, Milo had learned a valuable lesson about jumping to conclusions before he had all the facts. Perhaps she too should wait until she had all the facts before doing anything rash. Maybe, just maybe, Wilson was right. Maybe Greg was planning a really cool surprise for her. One day, her karma just had to turn around, didn't it?

She picked up her fork and took another bite of the bread pudding. It didn't feel like a stone sliding down her gullet this time.

Finally she spoke: "I kinda like the blue Outback 2.5 Limited with the quartz accent color. What do you think?"

Wilson gave her a smile. "I haven't seen it yet. Let's finish up here and go take a look."

+++ House MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The Subaru salesman was showing them that exact model when Wilson's phone rang.

"Where are you?"

"We're at the Subaru lot just like you said. The salesman is showing Issy one of the cars now."

Well, _now_ you need to get over _here_. Issy has to see this place pronto before someone else grabs it."

House gave him the address and directions and Wilson jotted them down on the back of the salesman's card.

Wilson closed his phone and shoved it in his pocket. "Issy, that was House. We have to go and meet him right now."

Issy bit her lip and then nodded. She thanked the salesman for his time and promised to be back for a test drive, hoping that she wasn't lying to him.

The three of them piled back into the car. Natalie asked: "So where are we going?"

Wilson replied: "I just have an address. House will tell us everything when we get there."

Fortunately for everyone's nerves, it only took ten minutes to reach the street. Issy's stomach did flip-flops the whole way over. As Wilson turned the corner and started looking for the house number, it suddenly occurred to him that he was about to introduce Natalie to his second ex-wife. The thought filled him with trepidation, but he didn't see any way out of it. He also couldn't tell her about it before they got there or it would blow the surprise for Issy. House was going to owe him big time for this.

Wilson easily found the house. Bonnie's sedan was parked in the driveway and Wilson pulled in next to her. By the time that they had climbed out of the car, the front door opened and House and Bonnie were walking towards them.

Issy felt her heart drop. "Wilson, why are we here and who is that woman with Greg?"

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck and started to reply, but before he could open his mouth, the two people had reached them.

House was smiling as he reached out for her hand. "Hey, baby, come on in. I have something to show you."

Issy let him take her hand and quickly asked: "Greg, aren't you going to introduce me to your companion?"

"Companion? Oh, her. Bonnie Wilson, Issy Walker. Introductions over, c'mon, let's go in."

He tugged her hand and she reluctantly followed. "Bonnie Wilson? But who is she? Is she related to Wilson?"

In a nonchalant tone, he answered: "Oh, yeah, she's Wilson's second ex-wife."

As they headed on to the front door, Natalie spun around and stared at Wilson. "James, what the hell is going on and is this woman really your second ex-wife?"

Wilson rubbed the back of his neck. He was positive that a migraine was coming on. House was _so_ going to owe him for this little adventure.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Room by room, House and Issy went through the entire house. He pointed out all the details of each room and waited for her reaction. Issy was so overwhelmed that all she could do was make one or two word comments. Every room was 'nice' or 'lovely'. She gasped at the kitchen and House took that as a good sign. He saved the master suite and bath for last.

"Check out this closet, sweetheart, isn't it huge? And wait until you see the bathroom. I swear it's the best part. Look at the tub. See the jets? It's a Jacuzzi tub, just like we had at the hotel in New York. And check out the shower. Not only is it big, but also there are two showerheads with massage action. Won't that be fun?"

Issy opened her mouth, but no words came out. All she could do was nod her head.

Finally they walked through the family room and out onto the patio. He pointed out the fenced in yard, the gas barbeque grill and then took her over to the rose garden.

"Look, sweetheart, you've got the beginnings of your flower garden already. What do you think?"

Issy was close to tears. The place was perfect. She couldn't have drawn a better house of her own design.

She managed to stammer out: "It's b-beautiful, Greg."

They strolled back across the grass to the bricked patio and paused by the grill.

"Sweetheart, you haven't said much at all. Do you like it? If you do, we'll buy it. If you don't, we'll keep looking. "

In a confused tone, Issy asked: "_W-we_ will b-buy it?"

House nodded: "Yeah, I'm not buying it without you. What the hell do I need a big house like this if I'm all alone? I want _us_ to buy this place and christen every room in the joint. Get a dog, or maybe two so that they can keep each other company while we're at work. You can plant more flowers and I can barbeque dead animal carcasses on the grill."

Issy stared at him: "I can't believe this. You mean it? You _really _mean it? You want _me_ to move into this house with you and be your _real_ girlfriend?"

Her eyes looked hopeful, with just a touch of fear. How could she still be harboring doubts about his feelings towards her? He wanted to wipe the fear away and hold her safe and secure in his arms for, well, for as long as she could put up with his cranky ass. If the kidnapping had taught him anything at all, it was that life was short and you should grab the good stuff while you can.

He cupped her cheek and slowly stroked it with his thumb. "No."

Issy's face crumbled and her jaw started to quiver.

House hastened to add: "No, wait, I mean, yes. Yes, I want us to move into our new home, but no, not as my girlfriend."

He took a big breath and then said: "I want you to be my wife."

Issy's eyes grew as big as saucers. "Your w-wife?"

House brought her left hand to his lips and kissed the third finger. "I want to put a ring on this finger, say some words in front of a judge and make you my wife. What do you say?"

Issy stammered: "You don't m-mean that. You can't, I don't, I m-mean, I'm a."

He interrupted: "Don't finish that sentence. I told you before that you are not _that word_. You are the woman I love and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"But, Greg, you don't want _me_ for your wife. I can't give you a child. You could find someone who could."

He shook his head. "I told you before that I never wanted to have kids. I love _you_ and I want _you_ to be my wife. Hey, you're young and gorgeous. You could find someone much better than me cuz I'm not such a great bargain. I'm 23 years older than you; I've got a bum leg and a nasty attitude. I'm hooked on Vicodin, which, combined with the booze, will probably kill my liver sooner than later. In twenty years, hell, probably ten, my body will totally break down and you'll be giving me bed-baths and spoon-feeding me Jello. My dick will stop working while you're in your sexual prime but, hey, we could always get you a boy toy."

Issy passionately refuted every argument. "I don't care that you're older than me, and you do not have a bad attitude. You're always good to me. You're not _hooked _on the Vicodin; you need them for the pain. There is a _difference_. Your body is not going to break down for a long, long time if I can help it. And I don't _want _a boy toy. Even if your dick stops working, your hands and mouth won't and there's always Viagra."

House chuckled: "Better living through chemistry. So, is that a 'yes'?"

She hesitated. He could see both desire and fear in her eyes.

He cocked his left eyebrow and teased: "You gonna make a cripple get down on one knee?"

Then his tone gentled: "You ask me this question all the time; how can you make me happy? Well, this is how. Tell me that you love me and that you'll marry my grumpy, gimpy ass and make me cookies until death we do part."

Simultaneously tears pooled in her blue eyes and a giggle escaped from her mouth. Her hands gripped his upper arms and then she said: "Yes."

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, I love you. And yes, I'll marry you and make you all the cookies that you want for the rest of our lives."

Somehow she was giggling and crying at the same time, but House took that to be a good sign. He held her close and let her get emotional all over his shoulder.

Then he chuckled to himself. He had just agreed to get married and buy a house. He should have been terrified but instead he felt strangely comfortable with the decision. He knew that what he really wanted was to spend the rest of his life with the woman in his arms.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a trio of people hovering. Bonnie was probably just wondering if she was going to get a commission off of this sale or not, while their friends looked genuinely concerned. He tilted his head to face them, resting his cheek on top of Issy's head. A smile spread across his face and for once, he didn't care who saw it. He squeezed Issy tighter and said the magic words: "We'll take it."

**THE END**

**Well, not quite. This was the original ending that I dreamed up. However, the characters have more to say, so it's not really the end yet. **

**There will be more forthcoming, However, NaNo, work and yet more computer issues are stealing my precious time. Please be patient for Chapter 83 which should appear**

**in a couple of weeks. Thank you soooooo much for reading,,, and Have a Happy Thanksgiving. glennie**


	83. Chapter 83

**A/N: Hello I'm back! Thanks for your patience. I'm happy to report that the epilogue has kinda gotten away from me and seems to want to be longer than I imagined! So instead of an epilogue, it's more of a continuation of the story after a brief hiatus. The not-so-good news is that I'll probably be able to post only once a week until after the holidays. Thank you so much for reading! I really appreciate it and love hearing from you.**

**Chapter 83**

_Sunday, June 22, 2008_

_One week later._

House squeezed Issy's hand and asked: "Nervous?"

She nodded. "I've never been on a plane before."

House knew _that _wasn't the only reason why she was nervous. His girlfriend, scratch that, _his fiancée_, had a lot on her plate at the moment and distraction seemed like the best course of action. He leaned over and picked up her left hand. "I can't wait for the cast to come off so that you can properly show this off."

Issy smiled and leaned her cheek against House's shoulder. "It's so lovely. I can't stop looking at it. I still can't believe that you bought me such a gorgeous ring."

They had gone to Tiffany's because House wanted only the finest for his woman. Together they picked out a Lucida square diamond solitaire in a platinum setting. The stone was 1.5 carat and flawless. It had set him back quite a bit of money, but the look on her face when he slipped in on her finger made it all worthwhile.

"It is lovely, but I still think you should have let me get you the 2 carat stone."

"The two-carat stone was _huge_. This one is perfect for me."

He kissed the top of her head. "As long as you like it, baby."

He settled back into the comfort of the business class seat, pleased that he had found jet service to Cleveland that afforded him this luxury. Only puddle-jumpers flew into the Akron-Canton airport and House didn't think his leg could take those cramped conditions. Since he was renting a car anyway, and Cleveland was only a thirty-minute drive from Akron, this made much more sense. He was still planning to work in a trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame while they were in the area.

The flight attendant made the 'fasten seatbelts, turn off all portable devices' speech and they settled in for the take-off. As they taxied down the runway, Issy gripped his arm tightly. Considering her nerves, it was probably a good thing that her first flight was not in a little puddle-jumper.

He covered her hand with his. "We'll be in the air in a few minutes. It's not a long flight and then a thirty minute drive and we'll be there."

"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. Going back to Akron."

"You're on a mission, baby. You're going to put the bad guys behind bars, just like they do on _'Law & Order'_. That will be a good thing, right?"

Issy nodded.

"And Howard found Flaco, you'll get to see him again."

Adam Howard had easily found Flaco, also known as Robert Brockston, still working at Goodyear after all these years.

Issy gave him a small smile. "Yes, it will be nice to see him again. I wonder if he's changed much."

"Well, I can guarantee that you have. The last time he saw you, you were eight years old."

"Yeah, I guess I've grown up a little, huh?"

House chuckled: "More than a little. You know, you should ask him if he has any pictures of your Dad. Didn't you say that there were some company barbeques that you attended?"

Issy's eyes brightened and she sat up straighter. "Yes, that's true. Oh, I remember now. There was a guy who was always snapping photos at those parties. What was his name? He wore black-framed glasses and had two little boys who were younger than me. I bet he has some photos of Daddy."

"Flaco will know who you are talking about. It would be cool to get a few more pictures of your dad."

"Oh, it would! I'd love to get more pictures."

Her voice trailed off. As the silence lengthened, House turned and looked at her. Issy's color had gone pale, and her eyes had a far-away look in them. Her breathing had turned shallow and irregular.

A warning bell went off in House's head. "Issy? What is it?"

The word came out very slowly. "Pictures."

"Ri-ight. Are you still talking about pictures of your dad, or some other pictures?"

It was a moment before she could speak. Her voice was a whisper. "How could I have forgotten?"

House put his arm around her and pressed her close to his side. "Forgotten what, baby?"

"There are pictures. _He_ took pictures of me. I remember now."

It took a moment for her words to fully sink in. "Are you saying that Frank took pictures of you back when?"

House couldn't finish the sentence, but Issy nodded affirmatively. "Yes, he did. I remember having to pose and the flashbulb going off. Ohmigod, there are _pictures_!"

In a hushed but urgent tone, House said: "Issy, if those pictures still exist, that's _proof,_ real physical proof of the abuse. That would be extremely important for the case. Do you remember where he kept them?"

She nodded again. "I do. There is a loose floorboard in their bedroom. You have to push the dresser a few inches to the left and then you can pry it up. That's where he used to keep them."

House would have bet decent money that the photos were still under that floorboard. Frank wouldn't have wanted to destroy them. The pervert would have wanted to keep around so that he could pull them out and look at them once in a while.

"They're probably still there, baby. Solid evidence of the abuse."

Issy shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe. He could have told one of his chums to go find them and destroy them."

"We'll call Howard as soon as we land and have him obtain a search warrant for the photos."

Issy pressed her face into his shoulder and whispered: "You have to promise me one thing."

"What's that, baby?"

"If they find the photos, you can't look at them. I don't want you to _see_ _me like that._ Please, _please_, promise me that you won't look."

Horrifying images filled his mind and his stomach churned. There was no way that House wanted to see photos of any young prepubescent girl being forced to perform sexual acts, much less the woman that he loved.

"I promise, baby. I won't look."

*** HOUSE MD *** HOUSE MD *** HOUSE MD ****

As they waited for their luggage to arrive, House called Adam Howard with the news. The attorney seemed quite excited by this turn of events; he'd make all the necessary phone calls to obtain a search warrant and get back to them.

There was nothing else for them to do at the moment. They found their luggage and then walked over to Enterprise to pick up their rental car. Issy seemed very subdued; she had barely said a word since she told him about the photos. House picked up the car keys, got directions and then they headed out to Akron.

The Quaker Square Inn at least provided a temporary visual distraction. The hotel sprung from a converted silo complex that once held more than 1.5 million bushels of grain. The wallpaper in the lobby depicted gears and cogs as if it were still a working silo. Even the rooms were round to conform to the shape of the silo. House had reserved an Executive King suite expressly for the king-sized bed and the over-sized garden tub. Issy was impressed with the room, although not as much as House would have thought. The photos seemed to be weighing heavily on her mind. When he suggested a nap, she eagerly agreed. They both stripped down and climbed into the luxurious bed together.

A phone call from Howard woke them two hours later. House put the phone on speaker so that they could both hear the attorney.

"We got them. They were right where you said they would be, Issy."

Issy covered her eyes with her hands and asked in a trembling voice: "Are they, I mean, will they be good evidence?"

Howard chuckled: "Oh, yeah. Frank Livingstone is going down _hard_. The photos will be introduced as evidence tomorrow and his attorney will be notified of their existence. The smart move on his part would be to get his client to plea guilty to lesser offenses."

Issy protested: "I don't want him to just get a slap on the wrist. I want him to get maximum jail time."

"Oh, I won't go for anything less than 20 to life. It would just be easier if he did plea guilty because then you wouldn't have to testify in open court."

Issy bit her lip. "Oh."

The thought of not testifying appealed to her, but she did want Frank to get the maximum penalty possible.

House asked: "You won't accept a plea deal without running it by us first, right?"

"That's correct. I want you to be satisfied with the verdict."

Issy spoke up: "I'd rather testify if it means Frank getting longer time in jail."

"I'll keep that in mind, Issy. Let's see what happens tomorrow. I'd like you to be in my office at 1PM if that's convenient. By that time, I should know which way the wind is blowing and if I have to prep you for testifying or not."

They agreed to meet Howard at the designated time and the attorney rang off, after suggesting that they try the Big City Chophouse for dinner.

House set his phone down on the bedside table and asked: "Does that place sound good for dinner?"

"Not tonight, OK? I don't really feel like going anywhere. Maybe we could go there another night, hopefully to celebrate a guilty plea. Could we just get pizza delivered today?"

He pulled her into his arms. "That always works for me."

*** HOUSE MD *** HOUSE MD *** HOUSE MD ***

Issy managed to eat two slices of the pie, but then pushed the rest away. Considering her state of anxiety, House was surprised that she had eaten that much. He surfed the channels looking for some comedy, but the best thing he could find was Adam Sandler in _'The Waterboy'_ and even he couldn't stomach that movie. Then inspiration hit him and he pulled out his laptop.

"You know the house will be ours in just a few weeks, once all the paperwork goes through. How about we start looking for a dog?"

He saw a small spark of interest in her eyes and he hastened onward: "You know there are rescue organizations that specialize by breed. There is a Lab rescue organization in Pennsylvania that's not too far from us."

She inched closer to him on the couch. "Really? Have you looked at their website?"

"Just briefly to see where they are located. Wanna take a look now and see how the adoption process works?"

Issy nodded eagerly and House felt a certain amount of tension drift away as she snuggled up next to him and waited while he found the desired webpage. The application process seemed fairly simple; it was just a matter of filling out a form, providing references and waiting for approval. Issy's excitement grew as they started looking at the list of available dogs.

"Oh, they all look so sweet, don't they? I hope they all find homes."

Envisioning a backyard full of dogs, House cautioned: "We can't bring them all home. Let's just try to find one or two for us."

The dogs were of both sexes, of various ages and all the colors of the Labrador breed. Issy tended to favor the black ones, so they focused on those dogs. Each dog has his or her own story to tell and some were quite sad, tales of abuse and neglect, which made Issy exclaim: "How can anyone treat an innocent dog that way?"

A surprising statement from someone who had been so horribly abused herself. House's only answer was: "There's a lot of mean people in the world."

He pointed at the next set of pictures. "Hey, look at these two."

Issy squealed: "Linus and Lucy! Just like the song. Oh, what does it say about them?"

Linus and Lucy were three-year-old littermates, brother and sister who had never been apart from each other. The agency was hoping to adopt them together, as Lucy was very shy and seemed rather dependent on her brother. A car accident had clamed the life of their owner and there were no family members that could take the two dogs. Linus was described as a smart, active dog that loved to run and play fetch. Tennis balls were his favorite toys, and he would chase one for hours if you let him. Lucy enjoyed chasing balls too, but her favorite activity seemed to be curling up at your feet and keeping you company.

House chuckled: "You and Linus can go running while Lucy and I hang out in front of the TV."

A broad smile appeared on Issy's face: "Yeah, that would be cool, right?"

House had no idea how cool it would be or not, since he'd never had a pet before, but having a dog was part of Issy's dream and he wanted her to have that. He pecked her on the lips. "Yes, it would. Come on, let's fill out the application and get the process started."

Thirty minutes later, the long application was filled out. They took some extra time to explain their current living situation and that their new home complete with fenced-in yard would be ready for people and dogs to move into in mid-July. Hoping that their answers would satisfy the agency, Issy hit the 'send' button with a flourish.

"Now we just have to wait for an answer."

House powered down his laptop and closed the lid. "Says the approval process takes ten to fourteen days. That time frame will put us that much closer to moving day. The timing might just work out."

"Speaking of work out, are you ready for bed?"

He grinned: "Not too tired for a little work out?"

She smiled back: "I had a nap; I'm good."

He pulled her into his arms: "You're way better than good."


	84. Chapter 84

**Chapter 84**

'_Children begin by loving their parents. After a time, they judge them. Rarely, if ever, do they forgive them.' Oscar Wilde_

_Monday, June 23__rd__, 2008_

They were in the middle of breakfast served via room service when Howard called. In an excited tone, he asked: "Can you be in the lobby in fifteen minutes? I'll send a car to pick you up."

Issy froze with a piece of toast halfway to her mouth and stared at House as he slowly replied. "We could, but what's this all about? You said to meet you at 1:00."

"Arlene is pleading out. Her attorney says that now that she is sober, she is overcome with remorse over her actions and wants to plead guilty and testify against Frank. By the time you get to the courthouse, I'll have the plea deal and we'll go over it to see if you find it satisfactory or not. Shelly, my legal assistant, will pick you up. Fifteen minutes, OK?"

House looked at Issy and she nodded. "Alright, we'll be there."

House closed the phone and asked: "If she pleads guilty, then you won't have to testify against her, and her statements will help to put Frank away."

"I know, I just want her to get some jail time for killing Daddy."

"And for allowing the abuse to happen. I'm sure Howard won't accept the deal unless there is some jail time on there. C'mon, let's get dressed and get down to the lobby."

A short brunette, hair pinned up in a bun, wearing a power suit and three-inch heels, was waiting for them when they entered the lobby. She stuck out her hand in greeting: "Ms Walker? Dr. House? I'm Shelly Zook, Adam Howard's legal assistant. Please come with me and I'll take you to the courthouse."

The entire trip only took ten minutes, but for Issy it seemed like an hour. Her mind churned with the thoughts of what was going to happen next. Once they arrived, Shelly guided them to a small conference room on the third floor of the courthouse. Adam Howard stood up when they walked into the room.

"Isabelle. Dr. House. Good to see you again. Please sit down. I was just looking over the plea agreement. Here's where we stand. Since Arlene claims your father's death was an accident and there was no weapon or any criminal activity occurring at the time of his death, the best that I could charge her with was reckless homicide. That is a third degree felony, which carries a penalty of one to five years."

Issy exclaimed: "That's all? And she's pleading down from that? That's a travesty!"

"Wait, wait, that's not all she's charged with. She's also charging with tampering with physical evidence, which is also a third degree felony with the same penalty. I charged her with pandering, because by allowing Frank to abuse you all these years, it's as if she were your pimp, and again, that's a third degree felony."

House asked: "So, if convicted of all three and given the maximum penalty, she's up to fifteen years, right?"

"Yes, but since the abuse occurred over a number of years, I charged her with one count of pandering for each _month_ that the abuse took place. Ditto with the charge of failure to report child abuse which is a first-degree misdemeanor. So given approximately seven years of abuse which is 84 months, that's 84 counts of pandering and failure to report child abuse, which by my calculations, the maximum penalty would be 420 years for the pandering and 42 years for the failure to report."

Issy rolled her eyes. "Obviously that's not going to happen."

"No, but I wanted to charge her with as much as possible and see what would stick or what she would plea down to. So here is it. She is willing to plead guilty to reckless homicide for causing your dad's death."

Issy gasped: "She's going to admit to that?"

Howard nodded: "And that's not all. She's pleading guilty to tampering with physical evidence and seven counts each of pandering and failure to report child abuse, one for each year that it occurred. If you add up the maximum sentence for all those charges, it would be 48 and one-half years. She's agreed to plea guilty on those charges and to testify against Frank in exchange for a twenty-year sentence with a chance for parole at fifteen. So she will have to serve at least fifteen years behind bars before she even has a chance for parole. How does that sound to you?"

Issy pressed her lips together in a tight line. "I wish it were longer. Daddy was in the reservoir for _eighteen _years. Seems like she should do the same amount of time."

House picked up her hand and squeezed it. "It'd be nice to see a longer sentence, baby, but a guaranteed fifteen years and testifying against Frank is not too bad, right?"

Issy thought for a moment and then replied in a quiet voice: "No, it's not too bad. It's actually better than I'd hoped. She's going to be really old when she gets out."

Howard said: "And the fact that she agreed to testify against Frank will go a long ways towards getting a conviction on him. I am hoping that between her testimony, the pictures and Roland Stanley's testimony, that Frank's attorney will urge him to cut a deal and plead out before we have to make you testify."

Issy shook her head. "I don't want him getting him off easy. I want him in jail for the rest of his life. I will testify if I have to in order to make that happen."

"We'll see what happens with that tomorrow. For now, if you are willing to accept this plea agreement, let me send Shelly with the news so we can move forward on getting Arlene pleaded out and sentenced. Then we need to head to my office so that I can prep you for testifying tomorrow, if it becomes necessary."

Issy nodded: "Fifteen years. OK, let's do it."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

They headed back to Howard's office, to prep for the tomorrow's evidentiary hearing. They broke once for lunch and again when Shelly returned with the news that the plea bargain was a done deal and the sentencing would be first thing tomorrow morning right before Frank's evidentiary hearing started. During the rest of the time, Howard peppered Issy with questions until she was in tears.

House growled: "Is this really necessary? The trial is about what he did to her, not about her life after she ran away from home. What does her being a dancer have to do with the abuse?"

"His attorney is most likely going to try to assault Isabelle's character to throw doubt on her testimony. Her former profession and the news article will probably be brought up as evidence of her character."

"I thought the old _'she's a whore and deserved what she gone'_ went out with the women's movement."

"We could only wish for that. Things are somewhat better, but there are always some old-timers who still think that a 'good girl' can't get raped."

Issy snarled: "What about a good ten-year-old? Do they give any allowances for that?"

Howard frowned: "Not always. This is why I'm hoping you won't have to testify. I know that publicly you denied that article and said that you were not a dancer. But you will have to tell the truth on the stand or face perjury charges. If push comes to shove, you know that the opposing side will find people who will swear as to your former profession."

Issy groaned: "But does the dancing have to come out?"

"I certainly won't be asking you about it; I'll only be asking you about the abuse, but when it is his turn to cross-examine you, there is no telling what he will ask you, and I'm concerned that he will ask about the dancing. I'll object, of course, but whether the judge will overrule or sustain is anyone's guess. That's why I want you to be prepared in case he does."

Howard continued to coach her all afternoon. By 5PM, she was exhausted and they called a halt to the session.

"Be at the courthouse at 9AM. We'll get Arlene's sentencing over with and then Frank's trial starts at 10AM in another room. I'll be calling Roland Stanley to the stand first, so that I can take that opportunity to introduce the photos as evidence. After that, I'll call Arlene. If they don't ask for a plea by the time, Arlene is finished, then I'll have to put you on the stand, Isabelle."

Issy nodded. "I understand."

"Any other questions before tomorrow?"

House answered: "Yeah, is there any good Chinese delivery joints in this town?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

They were both too exhausted to go out to dinner. House called downstairs to the Trackside Grille and got some burgers and fries delivered to their room. Once again, Issy picked at her food. It was obvious that today's session with the attorney had taken a lot out of her and House was fresh out of ideas to distract her. A soak and cuddle session in the tub helped her relax enough to fall asleep, but later that night, Issy woke screaming in terror from a nightmare where Frank had raped her on the floor next to her daddy's corpse while her mother had stood nearby laughing.

He held her while she cried and tried to comfort her. "Shhh, I got you. You're safe. It wasn't real."

Finally she cried herself back to sleep, but House stayed awake long after Issy had dozed off. Chase was right; Issy had some serious psychological issues that a job, house and dog were not going to be able to completely conquer. He would need to speak to her about considering some psych sessions when they got back to Princeton, especially if the nightmares continued.

Morning came way too soon. Issy managed a piece of toast and some coffee for breakfast and then they headed over to the courthouse. They were directed up to courtroom number five where they found Shelly waiting for them outside the door. She directed them to go inside and sit in the first row on the right hand side. Howard was already sitting at the attorney's table, jotting notes on a legal pad. He turned at their approach.

"This won't take long. The judge will ask the defendant how she pleas and then Arlene will plead guilty and give her statement. Should take twenty minutes tops."

A few minutes later, the left-hand door opened; Arlene and her attorney entered and seated themselves at the other table. Arlene glanced over her shoulder once in an effort to catch Issy's eye, but Issy refused to take the bait and looked the other way. After a few long minutes, Arlene finally turned to face forward.

Shelly slipped into the room and seated herself at the table next to Howard. There was no one else present in the courtroom. A few minutes later, just as the bailiff walked into the courtroom, House heard the door open and shut behind them. He turned and looked over his shoulder at the new arrivals.

One man was very tall and thin, hawk-nosed with thinning gray hair in a comb-over style. The other man was shorter, stockier with black-framed eyeglasses. The tall man gave House a nod as they took a seat in the last row.

Realization hit House just as the bailiff announced: "All rise! The honorable Judge Firestone presiding."

The tall man had to be Flaco. It would make sense that he would want to be here to see his best friend's killer get sentenced for her crime. He desperately wanted to tell Issy to turn around, but there was no time as the proceeding was starting.

Judge Firestone announced: "Today we are convening for the plea and sentencing of Arlene Walker, charged with one count of reckless homicide, one count of tampering with physical evidence, seven counts of pandering and seven counts of failure to report child abuse. Will the defendant rise?"

Arlene and her attorney stood up.

"Mrs. Walker, how do you plead to these charges?"

"Guilty, your honor."

The judge queried: "You plead guilty to all the charges? Is that correct?"

"Yes, your honor, guilty to all charges."

"Now this guilty plea comes with an agreement that the defendant will be sentenced to twenty years with no chance for parole for fifteen years. You've agreed to this sentence?"

"Yes, your honor."

The judge turned to the right hand side of the room. "Mr. Howard, are you in agreement with this plea?"

Howard stood up and replied: "Yes, your honor, the state accepts the plea and the twenty year sentence."

The judge banged his gavel once. "So be it. Before I impose the sentence, Mrs. Walker, you will give your statement."

Arlene picked up a legal pad, cleared her throat and began to read.

"On the morning of November 2, 1990, I had a terrible argument with my husband, John Walker. He stated that he was tired of my drinking and that he wanted a divorce. He said that he was going to leave me and take our child with him, that I was an unfit mother. This argument took place at the top of the stairs and I got very angry with him and gave him a shove. He toppled over and fell down the stairs. When I ran downstairs after him, I could see that his neck was broken and that he was dead. I hadn't meant to kill him; I just shoved him in the heat of the argument. I got scared and didn't know what to do. Right at that moment, Frank Livingstone showed up to give John a ride to work. He saw that John was dead and that I was scared; he came up with the plan to make it seem like John had left town. We put John's body and his belongings in the car and hid it in Frank's garage until nightfall. Around 3AM, Frank drove John's car to the reservoir, and I followed behind in Frank's car. Once we were there, we moved John's body into the driver's seat and then pushed the car into the water and watched it sink out of sight. Once it had disappeared, Frank drove me home and then he left, presumably going home."

"After that, Frank became very demanding. He started coming over for meals and then he began demanding sex from me. I acquiesced because I was afraid that if I didn't, he would turn me in to the police. After a few months, he decided that I should go on the swing shift and that he would move in with me and take care of my daughter while I worked."

"He had recently started paying a lot of attention to my daughter who was only eight at the time, and that's when I realized what his true motivation was, but I felt trapped by my guilt and let him move in. After six months or so, my daughter's behavior changed. She became moody and quiet and I knew that he was abusing her, but again I felt powerless to stop it. If I reported him for child abuse, he'd turn me in for killing my husband. My daughter never told me directly that he was abusing her, but once I saw birth control pills in the bathroom that weren't mine. Isabelle was only 13 at the time. She couldn't have gone anywhere to get them without a parent's consent and I certainly hadn't given consent. Another time, I walked in on her while she was changing and I saw welts across her back and buttocks. Frank would often leave our bed in the middle of the night and go into Issy's room when he thought I was asleep. I could hear her pleading with him not to do it and then her bed would start creaking."

The judge interrupted her: "So you saw and heard evidence of abuse and yet did nothing to stop it or report it to the police."

Arlene nodded: "That's correct, your honor. I tried to avoid the situation as much as possible. I worked as much as I could and when I was home, I was drinking. I had very little interaction with my daughter. Two weeks before her sixteenth birthday, she ran away from home and I didn't see her again for ten years."

The judge scribbled a few notes on his legal pad and then said: "You permitted terrible crimes to be committed against your own child. You caused the death of your husband and then covered up his death by hiding his body and concealing the evidence of your crime. It took you eighteen years to confess to these crimes. I see by your plea agreement that you will be a witness for the state in the trial of Frank Livingstone."

"Yes, your honor. I will testify to my knowledge of the abuse he committed against my daughter and to helping me cover up the death of my husband."

"This court accepts the plea agreement. Arlene Walker, you are hereby ordered to serve twenty years in the state penitentiary system with no opportunity for parole until you have served at least fifteen of those years. You are also sentenced to testify at Frank Livingstone's trial. Failure to do so will void this agreement and you will be brought back here for me to sentence you according to the laws of our state. Just for your information, you run the risk of a 48-year sentence if you are returned to this court."

He banged his gavel once. "Court is adjourned. Will the officers remove Mrs. Walker to a holding cell until she is called to testify at the evidentiary hearing? Once her testimony is completed, she will be remanded to the state penitentiary."

Two women police officers approached the table. One took out a pair of handcuffs and placed them on Arlene's wrists. As they started to lead her away, Arlene looked over her shoulder, straight at Issy and cried out: "I'm sorry, baby. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, please forgive me."

Issy turned and buried her face in House's shoulder, refusing to acknowledge her words. As the officers led Arlene towards the side door, a voice from the back of the courtroom yelled: "You'll get forgiveness when hell freezes over, you bitch!"

**A/N: I'm not a lawyer or even terribly knowledgeable on Ohio law. Any legal errors are my own.**


	85. Chapter 85

**Chapter 85**

Issy gasped and looked over her shoulder for the source of the voice. She saw a tall thin man standing in the back row who looked somewhat familiar. As her brain struggled to pull his face out of the filing cabinet of her memory, the man reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out four orange Tootsie Pops and extended his arm in offering.

Issy's brain kicked into gear. She screamed: "Flaco!"

House watched as she ran up the aisle and threw herself into the tall man's arms. Her sobs could be heard across the courtroom. The tall man hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her head. House saw him surreptitiously wipe his eyes, while the shorter man took off his glasses and openly wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.

The judge banged his gavel once. "Mr. Howard, this reunion is very touching but take it outside. I've got another case to try in thirty minutes."

Howard nodded: "Yes, your honor."

With Shelly's help, he managed to usher everyone out into the hallway. Shelly gave Issy some tissues and she wiped her face.

"Oh, Flaco, I can't believe you're here. I was going to look you up after all this trial stuff is over."

"I wanted to see you as soon as possible, Issy. The old guys at Goodyear, the ones who remember your dad, are all here with you in spirit. The foreman gave me and Hank the day off so that we could come over here and, you know, be supportive. You remember Hank, right?"

He indicated the shorter man standing on his right side.

Issy nodded. "You used to take pictures at the parties and you have two little boys."

The man nodded: "That's right, only there're not so little any more. Hank, Jr. went to trade school and became an electrician. He's married and gonna make me a Grandpa in the fall. Jimmy is living up in Cleveland and he's a DJ for a classic rock station."

Flaco beamed: "And look at you. Little Issy, all grown up. Becoming a nurse and saving those two little girls."

Issy held up her left hand. "And I'm engaged! This is my fiancée, Dr. Greg House."

Flaco held out his hand: "Bob Brockston, otherwise known as Flaco. Nice to meet you."

The short man held out his hand too. "Hank Dillon."

House shook hands with both of them. Issy seemed thrilled at seeing her dad's friends again, but he didn't want her to forget one very important question. Before he could remind her to ask Hank about the photos, the man reached into his pocket.

"I have something for you, Issy. These are some pictures from the Labor Day weekend barbeque. It was the last one, well, you know, the last one that you and your dad were at."

He handed Issy an envelope. She squealed as she pulled out the photos. "Oh, Greg, look! Here's me and Daddy."

An eight-year-old version of Issy was sitting on a picnic bench next to her dad. They both had a smothered hot dog in hand and had their mouths open to take a big bite. There were a couple of shots of Issy playing with the other kids and a shot of her dad standing next to a younger version of Flaco while the two guys manned the hamburger grill. The last shot was a photo of Issy standing on the picnic bench next to her dad. They had their arms around each other and her dad had his cheek resting on the top of Issy's head.

Issy sniffed: "This has to be the last picture of us together."

In an emotion-laded voice, Hank said: "You were the apple of his eye, kiddo. There wasn't anything that he wouldn't do for you. When you were little, we still had daycare at the plant. Everyday, he'd go and spent his lunch hour with you. When his shift was over, he would go and collect you and bring you out to show you off to the other guys. He was always bragging that he had the prettiest baby."

Flaco chimed in: "He loved to show you off any chance he got. When you started school, he'd tell us about your report card and he'd have your drawings taped on his locker. He loved you so much."

In a child-like voice, Issy asked: "Flaco, was that true what Arlene said? Was he really going to leave her and take me with him?"

The tall man nodded. "He told me that he was sick of her drinking and that he wanted the two of you to move out. He'd found a small house to rent that had a fenced in yard, and he told me that he was going to put a deposit on it at the end of the week when we got paid. The next day, he didn't come to work and he didn't call. When it happened again the next day, we got suspicious. The foreman called up Arlene and she said that he had just packed up and taken off in the middle of the night. I knew that it couldn't be true. He would have never left you, Issy. I tried to talk to Arlene, but she just blew me off. I spoke to the cops several times, but I couldn't convince them that there had to be foul play involved. Not with your mother saying that he left on his own."

Shyly, she said: "Thank you for trying."

His fists balled. "She wouldn't even let me see you. I knew you had to be upset with him gone missing, but she didn't seem to care one bit about you. She told all of us to leave you alone, and if any of us bothered you, she'd call the police on us. I wish that I could have done more."

She gave the tall man a hug. "You did everything you could. Thank you."

Then she turned to Hank and asked: "Do you have any other pictures of Daddy?"

"Well, sure, I have a bunch. You know I took pictures at all the parties and I took some at work too."

Issy said: "I only have one and it's from Christmas when I was four years old."

Hank frowned: "But your dad had tons of pictures. I always gave him copies from the parties; I just brought you these cuz I'd never had a chance to give him these copies.

"Yeah, well, _that day_, I came home from school and _she_ was destroying all the pictures. I only managed to save one and that's all I have until now."

She gestured with the envelope.

Hank replied: "I will make you copies of all the pictures that I have. I'll get them to you before you leave town."

"Thank you, Hank. I really appreciate it."

Flaco sadly shook his head. "It's so hard to believe that he's been gone for eighteen years. You're all grown up, put yourself through school to become a nurse, and he's not here to see it. He'd be so proud of you, Issy, so proud."

Adam Howard approached the group. "Hey, it's time we get inside now. It's about to start."

Hank said: "We're coming too. We have the whole day off and we are parking our butts in that courtroom and letting that rat bastard know that you have our support."

Flaco squeezed her shoulder and said: "Don't let him intimidate you when you get on the stand, Issy. I know it will be hard for you to talk about all of this in front of so many people, but you've survived worse. Keep your eyes on one of us and know that we are with you, and that your daddy is with you in spirit. Just pretend that he is sitting right next to you and holding your hand all through the testimony."

House watched as Issy stood just a bit taller and jutted her chin up. Then she said: "I'll make him proud, Flaco."

The tall man smiled and said: "I know you will, kiddo. You always did."

With those final words, the group turned and headed into the courtroom.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

An evidentiary hearing is held in felony cases for the judge to determine if there is sufficient evidence to support the charges or not. If the evidence is sufficient, the judge sends the case to Superior Court for trial. If there isn't enough evidence, the charges are thrown out. Since the crimes against Issy had taken place so long ago, Adam Howard was depending heavily on testimony and very lightly on the physical evidence, which consisted solely of the photographs.

The list of Frank's charges was much longer than Arlene's. As the bailiff read them out, House put his arm protectively around Issy's shoulders.

"Docket number 4586325. The State of Ohio versus Frank Livingstone. Charged with multiple counts of rape of a minor under the age of twelve, sexual battery of a minor under the age of twelve, unlawful sexual conduct of a minor, rape and sexual battery of a minor under the age of sixteen, pandering of a minor under the age of sixteen, child abuse, tampering with physical evidence, failure to report an unnatural death and unauthorized removal of a dead body."

The extensive list elicited murmurings amongst the courtroom spectators. Judge Walters banged his gavel once for silence and then asked: "How do you plead?"

Frank's answer was a sneer: "Not guilty, your Honor."

Both attorneys made their opening statements. Howard cited the horrific facts concerning Issy's long-term abuse and that the state had legal statute to prosecute these crimes that had occurred so many years ago.

Lenny Cheatum, Frank's attorney, claimed that his client was an innocent, hardworking man, who, out of the blue, had been slammed with these trumped-up charges from an emotionally labile young woman who wanted to regain the media's attention that she had held for a brief period of time after a kidnapping. The charges related to John Walker's death were merely delusions of his alcoholic partner's mind.

House clenched his jaw. Frank's attorney was definitely going to play dirty. He hoped that Howard had enough evidence to keep Issy from having to take the stand and face that shark.

Roland Stanley was the first witness to be called to the stand. When the courtroom door opened to admit him, Issy was surprised by the clean-shaven, trim man who walked up to the witness stand and raised his right hand to be sworn in.

He didn't look anything like the man she remembered. Roland Stanley was no longer a 300 pound alcoholic. He had gone to AA, sobered up, found God and trimmed down. He was a different man now and, as Detective McWhorter had hinted, he had amends to make.

Howard approached him: "Mr. Stanley, could you please tell this court what happened two weeks ago in this very courtroom?"

"Yes, sir. I pleaded guilty to rape of a minor under the age of sixteen."

Murmurings filled the courtroom and the judge had to once again use his gavel to silence the room.

Howard went on: "Would you please give this court the details of that case and explain how it pertains to the charges against the defendant."

"Yes, sir. One night in May of 1998, Frank Livingstone called me up and asked me if I was up for a good time. I thought that meant that he had some good liquor as I was drinking heavily back in those days and that's what a good time meant to me. I said _'sure'_ and headed over to his place. He also invited another guy over, Al Bessler. We sat in the living room and had a beer and then he got to the point. He told us that for twenty bucks apiece that he would let us screw his stepdaughter. We kinda laughed, like we didn't believe him. And he said: _'I mean it. You can screw the little slut for twenty bucks. You go downtown and you can only get a blowjob for that kinda money. You want to or not?'_ So we both said, _'Yeah, sure, we'll give ya twenty bucks to screw her'_. He opens up the closet and pulls the girl out of there. When he told her what she had to do, she freaked out. She fought him like a wildcat, but Frank slammed her up against the wall a couple of times. That knocked a little of the fight out of her; we took her into the bedroom and stripped her clothes off. She seemed to come back to her senses by then and started struggling, but we tied her to the bed. Frank stuffed her panties into her mouth to keep her from screaming. Al pulled out his wallet and slapped a twenty into Frank's hand. Then he unzipped his pants and climbed on top of her. She continued to struggle but she couldn't really do anything. She was tied pretty tight. When Al finished, I pulled out a twenty and handed it to Frank."

Stanley sighed and looked down at his hands for a moment. "Back then, I was a really big guy, a little over 300 pounds. I was half in the bag by then, but I still managed to get it up and I climbed on top of the girl. I remember that she gasped around her gag; I'm sure that my weight was too much for her, but I was past caring. I had my way with her and then climbed off when I'd finished. We left her tied to the bed and returned to the living room to drink some more beer. After a hour or so, Al and I went home."

Howard said: "Your honor, I'd like to introduce some photographs as state's exhibit number one. These photos were found in the Walker home underneath some floorboards in the master bedroom. Their location had been reported to us by the victim and the photos obtained by proper search warrant."

The judge quickly examined the evidence and nodded. "You may proceed."

Howard went on: "Mr. Stanley, I'd like to show you several photographs. Could you please describe this first photo for the court?"

Issy buried her face in her hands; House hugged her protectively closer.

On the stand, Stanley took a deep breath. His expression was one of shame and tone was regretful. "That's a picture of Frank's stepdaughter tied up to the bed."

"Let the record show that in this photo, the victim is tied hand and foot to the bedposts and she is completely naked. A gag is stuffed into her mouth."

Careful to show the photos only to the witness and not towards the courtroom, Howard picked up another photo and asked: "And this one?"

"That's Al Bessler on top of the girl."

"And what about this one?"

The man glanced at it and then quickly looked away. He closed his eyes for a moment and shook his head before answering: "That's me."

"I need you to be more specific. Please describe the contents of the photo for the court."

Stanley cleared his throat and said: "That's me on top of Frank's stepdaughter, when it was my turn to rape her."

Frank's attorney leaped to his feet. "Objection!"

With a puzzled look on his face, Judge Walters squinted at the defense attorney. "To what? The witness is describing the contents of the photo. I see nothing for you to object to. Overruled. The witness may continue."

Pleased that his sparring partner had lost the first round, Howard went on. "So, Mr. Stanley, if I understand you correctly, this photo shows you having nonconsensual sex with a bound and gagged fifteen-year-old minor. Is that correct?"

"Yes, sir. I'm ashamed to say that it is true."

"And you pleaded guilty to this crime two weeks ago, before these photos were discovered and could be admitted as evidence, is that right?"

"Yes, sir."

"And where was the defendant while these acts were taking place?

"Frank was standing off to the side, watching us and taking the photos. I remember him laughing and saying how much fun it would be to look at them later."

"Did he have sex with the child?"

Frank's attorney stood up and said: "Objection! Prejudicial statement. The girl in question was fifteen-years-old. Hardly a child."

The judge shook his head. "Still a minor. Objection overruled. The witness may answer the question."

"He didn't have sex with her while we were there, but he said he was going to after we left."

The defense attorney was on his feet again. "Objection! Hearsay."

Howard retorted: "Your honor, the witness did not say that he _saw_ the defendant having sex with the victim; he is stating what the defendant said to him, therefore it is not hearsay."

The judge frowned for a moment and then said: "Sustained. Mr. Howard, rephrase your question."

Howard repeated the question: "Did you personally see Frank Livingstone have sex with the minor?"

Stanley shook his head. "No, I did not."

"Did you have reason to believe that the defendant had ever had sex with the victim?"

Cheatum called out: "Objection! Calls for speculation."

Howard quickly replied: "I have a reason for this line of questioning, your honor."

Judge Walters let out an exasperated sigh. "Well, get on it quickly or these questions will be stricken from the record."

Howard rephrased the question: "Was there anything that led you to believe that Frank Livingstone had previously had sex with the victim?"

Stanley nodded. "Yes, he told us that he had and he showed us some photos."

"When did this happen?"

"That same night, after Al and I had raped the girl. We left her tied to the bed, went back into the living room and had some more beers. Frank bragged that he had popped her cherry right after she started getting her periods at age eleven."

Issy groaned. Face still covered by her hands, she leaned forward until her forehead was almost touching her knees. House's protective arm around her shoulders brought little comfort as the most horrible moments in her life were discussed in open court.

Stanley continued with his testimony. "He went on and on describing the sexual things that he did to her and then he showed us some pictures. I guess they were meant to be provocative. The girl would be posed spread-eagle on a bed, or bent over the couch with her fanny in the air. In some of them, you could see her performing oral sex or, umm, you could see the penis entering her, uh, vagina."

Howard fanned out six photos and displayed them for Stanley to see. "Do these photos look like the ones that Frank showed you back in May, 1998?"

Stanley took a moment to examine them and then replied: "Yes, those are the photos that Frank showed us. I remember this one in particular."

He tapped the third photo from the left.

Howard inquired: "Why do you remember that one in particular?"

"Because it was the one that got to me. You can see the tear-streaks on her face. I remember thinking that he forced this little girl to have sex with him, the same little girl that was tied up in the other room. And just like that, it hit me, that I had just raped a defenseless young girl. I was kinda stunned. I sat there drinking a few more beers while Frank and Al continued shooting the breeze, but I had tuned out their conversation. Finally Frank told us that it was getting late and he wanted to be getting on with the rest of his evening plans, but that we could do this again some other night. That was our cue to leave, so we did."

"And what, if anything happened after that?"

Stanley shook his head: "It was a one time event. I heard a few days later that the girl had run away from home. I remember thinking that I couldn't blame her. The guilt weighed on me and I started drinking even more. Two years later, I got thrown in jail on a drunk and disorderly charge. Spent the weekend in jail before I could go before a judge and get bailed out. That was bottom for me. I went to A.A. and never took another drink again."

The defense attorney stood up and said: "That's a lovely story, but all you are doing is implicating yourself in a rape that you have already pled guilty to. You never saw my client have sex with the girl. You don't know who took those photos. You can't tell who is having sex with the girl in the photos."

Stanley said: "Frank said."

But the defense attorney interrupted before the witness could say anything else. "Again, that's hearsay. Your honor, I ask that these photos be ruled inadmissible. Aside from being found inside of my client's home, you have nothing to tie these photos to my client. Someone could have planted those photos there to incriminate my client. There is nothing to prove that my client had anything to do with these photos."

Issy's head shot up; the expression on her face unreadable.

The judge examined the photos again. After a moment's perusal, he said: "These photos show _someone_ having sex with this young girl. However, the defendant's face is not in any of the pictures nor do I see any scars or moles on the man's body that would aid in the identification process. Mr. Howard, the burden of proof is on you. I will allow the photos as Mr. Stanley's testimony does link the photos to the defendant, but you need more proof that the defendant himself performed these acts. "

A stunned silence filled the room, a quiet so profound that everyone heard Flaco mutter: "Son of a bitch!"

A chuckle emerged from the defense table. All eyes looked in that direction. Frank was laughing quietly, hand over his mouth. Then he turned and stared at Issy, a nasty smile on his face.

Issy stared back, her face stony. She muttered to House: "He thinks he's going to get away with this. He thinks we don't have enough evidence for a conviction."

The judge banged his gavel for silence. "Mr. Howard, do you have any more questions for this witness?"

Howard answered: "I have no more questions, your Honor."

Judge Walters turned to the defense attorney. "Do you have any questions for this witness?"

The attorney rose and said: "Just one, your Honor. Mr. Stanley, at any time, did you ever see my client perform a sex act on Isabelle Walker?"

"No, he didn't perform a sex act, but he helped us strip her clothes off and tie her to the bed and then he took photos."

The defense attorney held up his hand in a 'stop' gesture. "That's not what I asked you, sir. You confessed to having sex with her, and you testified that you saw Al Bessler have sex with her, but did you ever see Frank Livingstone perform any type of sex act with the alleged victim?"

Stanley blew out a deep breath of frustration. "No, I did not see Frank Livingstone perform an actual sex act on Isabelle Walker."

The defense attorney smirked and said: "No more questions, your honor."

Judge Walters turned to Roland Stanley and said: "The witness is dismissed for now. Please remain available for future questioning."

Stanley stood up and started to leave the witness stand. Suddenly he turned around and looked right at Issy. In a loud voice, he said: "Isabelle, I'm sorry. I'm very sorry for what I did to you. I'd like to make amends but I don't know how. I hope that you will accept this public apology."

The judge banged his gavel. "Silence, Mr. Stanley, or you will be held in contempt. You can make your amends outside of my courtroom. We will now recess for lunch and reconvene at 2PM."

He banged his gavel once more and the morning session was over. Everyone rose while the judge exited the courtroom.

Eyes blazing, Issy turned to House and said: "_Alleged victim_, my ass! I'm getting up on that stand and telling everyone just what that bastard did to me."

In a worried tone, House asked: "Are you sure you want to do that, baby? You don't know what the defense attorney might ask you."

Issy stood up straighter and jutted her chin in a defiant manner. "Howard will object if it is inappropriate. Besides, I have nothing to hide. I was a victim and I'm getting my day in court. I will not be afraid of him any longer. Besides, on _'Law & Order',_ Detective Benson always says that testifying is empowering."

House muttered under his breath: "She better be right."


	86. Chapter 86

**A/N: An early post this week because tomorrow I'll be driving making a 5 hour drive to get my new dog! Very excited about that. I found her on Petfinder, which is where I found my last dog. She was rescued from a kill shelter with literally 39 minutes left to live, as they only keep the dogs for 3 days due to overcrowding, and her 3 days were almost up. Thankfully she was saved by a nice lady who runs a bulldog rescue organization.**

**Work and RL issues have kept me busy so I haven't been able to write as much as I would like. At this point, I will still be posting just once a week. Normally, I'll try to make it Friday or Saturday depending on how RL is treating me. Thanks to everyone for reading,, and wishing you a very Happy New Year.**

**Warning: some graphic details ahead of child abuse.**

**Chapter 86**

"Issy, are you sure that you want to testify? I was planning on calling Arlene up to the stand next."

They had all gone back to Howard's office. At Issy's urging, Flaco and Hank had also been invited to join them. Shelly had had sandwiches from a local deli delivered for their lunch and now they sat around a table in the conference room, eating and discussing strategy.

Issy vigorously nodded her head. "I have to testify. You heard what Arlene said. She never actually _witnessed_ any abuse; she just had suspicions and that's not going to cut it with the judge. I'm the only one who can say exactly _who_ was doing those despicable acts to me in the photos. If I don't testify, Frank will skate on the rape and child abuse charges."

Howard argued: "You saw what Cheatum is like? You realize that once he starts to cross-examine you, that he'll most likely ask about your dancing career?"

"I know, but you'll object, right?"

"Like I said yesterday, I'll object to the relevance, but we don't know if the judge will allow it or not. Cheatum will claim that it is a necessary line of questioning and the judge could permit it to see where he goes with it, just like he did with my line of questioning today."

Issy shrugged: "I won't perjure myself. I'll tell the truth."

Howard sighed: "OK. You'll be the next witness. Keep your answers short and to the point. Don't let him push your buttons and end up saying too much."

"I'll tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

The slight attempt at humor brought small smiles to most faces, but House frowned. He wasn't keen on Issy having to take the stand; concerned that the defense attorney would tear apart his fragile fiancée. But it wasn't his decision, it was hers and all he could do was give her his support.

House squeezed her shoulder: "Try to eat some of your sandwich, Iss. You're going to need your strength."

Issy looked at him and smiled: "Would you hand me a Coke, please?"

Shelly slid a can of Coke down the table to her. Issy managed to eat about three quarters of her turkey sandwich and drink all of her Coke. After the remains of the meal were cleaned up, they stood and got ready to leave.

Issy squeezed House's hand. "I'll be OK. I'm ready to do this."

He looked down at her. Her shoulders were square; her chin jutted up and there was an essence of strength radiating from her. He squeezed back. "You've already lived through it; the worst is over and now you just gotta tell the tale. It won't be easy, but I know you can do it. You're the bravest woman I know. Just look at me if you get scared. I'll only be a few feet away."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

Back in the courtroom, Adam Howard announced: "I call Isabelle Walker to the stand."

Issy stood and quickly made her way to the witness stand. She was sworn in and stated her full name for the record. Then Howard began his line of questioning with: "Tell us what happened on the afternoon of November 2nd, 1990."

Issy launched into the story of how she came home from school to find that her daddy had disappeared and her mother was systematically destroying every trace of him in their house. She managed to save the one photograph of him, but her questions to her mother about her father's disappearance had not only gone unanswered but were also met with physical abuse.

Howard's next question was: "When did Frank Livingstone start coming around your house?"

It was as if a dam had burst. Issy started talking and couldn't seem to stop. She told how Frank started coming around and how his friendly gestures became something more sinister after he had moved in with them. Issy started at the very first inappropriate touch and bathroom visit and kept going and going. She faltered when she spoke of how Frank had taken her to the sleazy doctor to get the birth control pills, but she gripped the arm of the chair tightly, took a few deep breaths and then continued on.

On occasion, Howard would break in and ask: "How old were you when that happened?" He wanted to make sure that the judge knew just how young Issy had been when the abuse had occurred.

Issy told how Frank would make her watch porn with him and how he would whip her while she laid naked across the bed and then force her to perform oral sex on him. A few tears leaked out of her eyes as she spoke of the pain of losing her virginity when she was not yet twelve years old. The years of abuse unfolded right up to the very last time when Frank sold her to Roland Stanley and Al Bessler for twenty dollars apiece.

"After Stanley and Bessler raped me, they left me tied to the bed and went back out to the living room. After a while, I heard the front door slam and then Frank came back into my room and untied me. He told me to go and take a shower, as he didn't want 'sloppy seconds'. I did as I was told and then went back to my room where he proceeded to rape me. When he was finished, he rolled off of me and laughed. He said that he 'had a goldmine with my pussy' and that he was going to ask his friends over again so that he could make some extra money off of me. I decided right then that I was going to run away that night."

House glanced at the two men sitting next to him. Flaco had his face buried in his hands and Hank was wiping his eyes with his handkerchief. Even though, House had heard this story before, it was still hard for him to not be affected by it. The sandwich that he'd had for lunch sat like a rock in his stomach.

Howard approached the witness stand and said: "Ms. Walker, I'd like to show you some photos. Please tell me if you recognize them."

In a small voice, Issy replied: "OK."

This was the thing that she had feared the most, seeing the photographs again. She looked out into the audience and caught House's eye. He gave her his most reassuring look and a nod, trying to send her the mental message, _'you can do it, baby'_. Issy nodded back and turned her attention to the photographs.

One by one, Issy slowly looked at each photo and described what was in it. After the second photo, her stutter came on in full force; House worried about the emotional toll that testifying was having on her and the cross-examination was still to come.

Howard asked in a gentle tone: "Ms. Walker, this next photo is the one that Roland Stanley testified as gravely affecting him. Could you please describe this photo for the court?"

Issy glanced at the photo and then turned away, squeezing her eyes shut. When she did not answer Howard, he asked again: "Ms. Walker, I know this is painful, but could you please describe this photo to the court?"

Issy swallowed hard and began. "I'm, I'm doing oral s-sex on F-frank. He had w-whipped m-me with this plastic t-tubing that he l-liked to use and I'd c-cried. Then he y-yanked me off the b-bed and p-pushed m-me to my knees so t-that I c-could do oral s-sex to him. You c-can s-see, umm, the t-tear s-streaks on my f-face."

Flaco raised his head just enough that House could see his swollen red eyes. He muttered: "Christ, I can't believe she endured all of that."

House nodded and said softly: "I know."

Howard moved through the rest of the photos quickly. Issy confirmed that she was the young girl in each of the photos and that Frank was the photographer and abuser in each one of them.

Finally, Howard had reached the end of his line of questioning. Hopefully Issy's testimony had proved to the judge that the photos should be admissible evidence. He knew Issy was emotionally drained already, but hoped that she would be able to get through the cross-examination relatively unscathed. Howard took a deep breath and said: "I have no more questions for this witness at this time, Your Honor."

Judge Walters looked at the defense table and said: "Your witness, Mr. Cheatum."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Lenny Cheatum stood and took a few steps towards the witness stand. "Ms. Walker, at what age did you start dancing in clubs?"

Howard was immediately on his feet. "Objection! Relevance!"

Cheatum interjected: "Your Honor, this line of questioning is necessary to prove that the witness has an unstable mental status and an unsavory background."

Judge Walters shook his head: "This is an evidentiary hearing, in case you forgot Mr. Cheatum. You are here to present evidence or to attempt to discredit it. You may question the witness's testimony, or try to discredit the photos, but save the character assassinations for the actual trial. Objection sustained."

Howard turned and walked back to his seat, throwing a small smile in House's direction. The doctor nodded back. This was good news for their side. Denying the defense attorney the right to question Issy about the dancing, kept the focus on the abuse where it belonged.

Cheatum almost looked defeated as he walked back to his table. He gave Frank a slight headshake before picking up his yellow legal pad. The attorney took so long that the Judge asked: "Mr. Cheatum, we don't have all day. Do you have any questions for this witness?"

"Yes, your Honor, I do."

After dropping his legal pad back on the desk, the defense attorney walked towards the witness stand and peppered Issy with questions, challenging her testimony and attempting to trip her up. His attempt was futile; Issy was not at all confused about the events that had happened to her and she succinctly answered every one of his questions.

Finally Cheatum said: "I have no more questions for this witness."

Judge Walters said: "Ms. Walker, you may stand down. Call your next witness, Mr. Howard."

Issy was exhausted to the bone, but she managed to rise from the witness chair and walk back to her seat. House could see the weariness in her face; he wanted to pull her into his lap and hold her tightly but he didn't think the judge would approve. Not wanting to be cited for contempt, he settled for wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Issy leaned her head against him and took Flaco's proffered hand. She closed her eyes and listened to the rest of the proceedings.

Arlene Walker was called to the stand next. Howard took her through the events surrounding John Walker's death and Frank's participation in getting rid of the body. It was only when Howard started asking about Arlene's knowledge of the abuse that Cheatum started objecting.

Arlene's mention of Issy's mood changes was challenged as being 'subjective' and the judge sustained the objection. When Arlene described the welts that she had seen on Issy's body, Cheatum objected, saying that Arlene had not witnessed Frank inflicting the welts on Issy and that someone else could have beat the girl; again the judge sustained the objection. The telling of Frank leaving the bed in the middle of the night and hearing Issy's pleadings and the bed creaking also brought forth an objection. Again Cheatum claimed that there was no way that Arlene could have known what was happening in Issy's bedroom if she did not get up and go look for herself. The judge took a few moments to ponder that one and then he sustained that objection too.

Howard felt somewhat disheartened when Arlene was released from the stand. Her part of the testimony concerning the abuse had been mostly stricken from the record. If it weren't for Issy's testimony, the photos and Stanley's corroborating testimony, he wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell of making this case. It was pointless to put Al Bessler on the stand; Howard knew that the man would simply deny everything or plead the fifth. Bessler's own case had not gone to court yet, and Howard was still hoping to make a deal with him in exchange for testifying against Frank. In Howard's mind, Bessler would have to be very stupid to take his case to court and have to deal with Stanley and Issy testifying against him, especially now that there was photographic evidence of the rape. Howard really didn't need Bessler's testimony against Frank, but a plea bargain would keep Issy from having to testify at yet another trial.

Both attorneys made their closing arguments. As it was nearing 5PM, Howard fully expected Judge Walters to order them back the next day for his decision, but the judge surprised them.

"Based on the evidence that I've seen and heard today, I am declaring that the evidence is sufficient and there is probable cause to charge Frank Livingstone on all charges presented. I am sending this case on to Superior Court for a trial date. The defendant will remain held without bail until that time."

The judge banged his gavel once and court was dismissed.

Howard breathed a sigh of relief. It's a good thing that Issy had been willing to testify or today's outcome could have been completely different.

Issy threw her arms around House's neck. "We did it!"

House chuckled: "_You_ did it, baby. It was your testimony that made up the judge's mind. You were right; Howard didn't have enough evidence without you."

Howard approached them. "The first stage is over. Superior Court will set a trial date and you'll have to come back to testify for that. Depending on the docket, it will probably be two or three months away."

House said: "Excellent. Now I think we have something to celebrate. How do you feel about eating at that steak house tonight?"

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

House, Issy, Adam, Flaco and Hank had a celebration dinner at the Big City Chophouse. Over huge porterhouse steaks and baked potatoes, the two older men told stories about their friend, John Walker.

Flaco said: "You know, we grew up together. We built tree houses, had snowball fights, played Little League and double-dated in high school. So it was just natural that we'd end up working at Goodyear together. None of us had the smarts nor the money to go to college and it was a decent paying job. One time, your dad."

He went into a fit of laughter before he could continue. The story of a double-date disaster made them all laugh until the tears ran down their faces.

Then Hank told a story about their first day on the job at Goodyear and then Flaco piped in with yet another story about a high school football game.

The evening continued like that all the way through dessert and coffee. Issy alternated between laughing and crying at all the stories. She was getting a wonderful picture of her dad, the man that she had known and loved for a mere eight years. By the time that the waiter brought the check, her mind was made up.

"I'm ready now."

House inquired: "Ready for what, baby?"

Issy took a deep breath and said: "I'm ready for Daddy's funeral. Flaco, I'd like you to give the eulogy since you're the one who knew him best. Maybe you could tell a couple of the funnier stories of your youth."

Flaco nodded solemnly: "Of course, Issy. I'd be honored to give the eulogy. Do you want any music?"

"I don't know; I hadn't thought about that. I don't want anything really sad like _'Danny Boy'_ or _'Amazing Grace'_, that's for sure."

He nodded: "I'll come up with something."

Hank piped in: "Issy, if you want, I could print up a nice photo of your Dad to display in the room?"

"Yes, that would be very nice. Thank you, Hank."

Then Issy turned to the attorney and asked: "Mr. Howard, how long will it take to get things set up?"

Howard shook his head. "Not long. We could easily hold it on Friday or Saturday."

Hank interjected: "If you hold it on Saturday, that would be better for the guys from Goodyear. They would be off work and able to attend."

Issy turned to Howard and asked: "Can you set it up for Saturday?"

"You bet. That won't be a problem at all. I'll call the funeral director tomorrow. You'll need to meet with him for a few last minute arrangements but that won't take long."

House said: "Set that up for Thursday. Issy and I need a little breather tomorrow."

He turned to Issy and said: "Cleveland rocks."

She smiled at him and said: "It sure does."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++++

When he was able to focus coherently again, he panted out: "You are the most amazing woman that I've ever known."

_The kissing had started in the elevator. By the time they had reached their hotel room, they were tearing at each other's clothes. Once the door was closed behind them, those hindrances were quickly shed, and they fell onto the bed. House eased Issy back onto the pillows and then started kissing her all over. She purred at the pleasurable sensations that his mouth and hands were giving her. Her back arched up and she let out a small scream when his tongue found her swollen button. He toyed with it until she begged for release. House took pleasure from her reaction and smiled as she screamed his name out at the height of her passion. When she had recovered, her hands and lips eagerly sought out Mt. Gregory. She took him to the brink and back twice before finally allowing him to fall over the edge. _

She inched back up the bed and lay down next to him. "Is that because of the _amazing_ blowjob that I just gave you?"

He put his arms around her and pulled her deeper into his embrace. Once her head was comfortably nestled on his shoulder, he said: "Yeah, that was pretty damn amazing, but it wasn't what I meant."

House stroked her cheek with his fingertips for a moment and then said: "You were so amazing in the courtroom today. You were so strong, so brave, so _determined_ to fight for justice. You got up there and told the whole sordid tale in front of a room full of witnesses, a story that you had never even told _anyone_ before telling me just a few months ago. I'm."

In a voice choked with emotion, he went on: "I'm very proud of you. I'm proud to call you my fiancée and I can't wait until you are my wife."

Issy barely had time to mumble a 'thank you' before his lips crashed down on hers. Their tongues danced passionately with each other. Their arms tightened around each other as they tried to press their bodies infinitesimally closer. Issy threw her leg around House's waist to bring her center even closer to his.

Finally they had to break for air. Their lips only millimeters apart, breathing each other's air, Issy said: "You know what?"

House panted: "What?"

"I can't wait to fu-uck you again."

Issy had managed to stretch that four-letter word into two syllables.

House laughed, rolled onto his back and pulled her on top of his chest. "Such naughty language. I like it."

He kissed the tip of her nose and asked: "What? My tongue and hands don't quite do it for you?"

"Don't think that for one single minute. Every part of your body is extremely talented. I just want."

Issy paused for a second and then said: "I just want that feeling of us being joined again. I want to feel you inside of me. I want the weight of your body covering me."

House smiled at her words; there was nothing that felt as good as being joined with the woman he loved. "I want that too, but we have to wait just a little while longer. Your six-week appointment is July 11. You'll get the cast off and get your hoo-hoo checked out. If everything has healed up, we'll get the green light for fu-ucking again."

Issy giggled at his mimicry of the word. She relaxed into his embrace, comfortable and content to be lying on his chest.

Suddenly, he asked: "When you do want to get married?"

She propped her chin on his chest so that she could look him in the eye. "In a hurry? I've been your fiancée for only ten days."

His fingertips ran up and down the length of the body; it was such a light touch that it gave her goose bumps and made her shiver.

There was a small part of him that wanted to seal the deal before she wised up and changed her mind about marrying an old grumpy gimp. That was not something that he wanted to reveal to her, however.

"Not really in a hurry. It's just that _fiancée_ has three syllables and _wife_ only has one. It's faster to say."

Issy giggled: "Oh, well, now that you've _explained_ it to me, I totally get it. It's all about syllable conservation."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, tease the old gimp. Excuse me for taking 49 years to find the perfect woman and wanting to seal the deal quickly."

Issy's jaw dropped. "The perfect woman? Me?"

She looked down at her scarred breasts, her meaning obvious.

His fingers gently stroked the biggest scar and then he cupped her breast before answering in a soft voice: "Yes, absolutely perfect."

Issy looked deeply into his eyes and was astonished at the depth of emotion that she saw. She knew that she was far from perfect, but if he believed it, who was she to convince him otherwise?

She affectionately rubbed her nose against his and then kissed the tip. "So just how quickly do you want this? You mean like a courthouse wedding with just two witnesses?"

House quickly scanned her face trying to discern whether she approved of that type of wedding or not. It was fine with him, but the questioning tone of her voice made him think that Issy wanted something more.

"Do you want the big white church wedding, baby?"

Issy wrinkled up her nose. "Not a church wedding. But."

"But what?"

She actually blushed which House found to be so adorable. She looked down and watched as her finger swirled a pattern on his chest. In a hesitant tone, she answered: "I was actually, well, I have been thinking about a wedding dress. You know, a long white dress. Maybe even a veil and some flowers. And I thought it would be nice if Wilson and Natalie were there, and maybe a few others."

He teased her gently. "Getting a little girly about it, aren't you?"

Her color deepened as she shyly nodded her head.

He didn't mind the wedding dress part; hell, he'd love to see her dressed up like a princess. He'd even wear the monkey suit for his girl. It was the guest list that concerned him. "How many people are we talking about?"

"Not a lot. Maybe twenty?"

Firmly, he stated: "Not my parents."

"No, just our friends. A small intimate affair."

"OK. No church, no parents and no more than 20 people. Where and when you do want to do it?"

"Well, I have an idea, but it's a little unconventional."

He pulled her closer. "I think I like it already."


	87. Chapter 87

**Chapter 87**

**Sorry for the delay! Much time spent playing with the new dog! She's really great, very sweet and loves to give kisses.**

_Wednesday, June 25, 2008_

They spent the next day at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The exhibits definitely lived up to House's expectations. He particularly enjoyed seeing the collection of instruments that had been owned by the famous musicians. There was Duane Allman's 1959 Gibson Les Paul electric guitar, the one that he used during the recording of _'Layla'_ for Derek and the Dominos. There was Muddy Water's 1958 Fender Telecaster and Jeff Beck's beat-up Fender Esquire. For House, the highlight was seeing Les Paul's modified 1942 Epiphone Broadway that the musician referred to as 'The Clunker'.

Issy particularly enjoyed reading every single word that was written about Eric Clapton. She also liked the drawings of Jim Morrison and seeing some of the actual outfits that the performers had worn, like John Lennon's Sgt. Pepper uniform and Mick Jagger's flag cape.

They spent the entire day there, breaking for lunch at the Rock Hall Café and some shopping at the Museum Store. Issy insisted on buying House a sleeveless black motorcycle tee that proclaimed _'Long Live Rock'_ on it.

She giggled: "You are going to look so hot in this."

House rolled his eyes and went looking for a hot tee shirt for his babe. He ended up showing her a white tank top that displayed a peace symbol and the words _'peace, love, rock and roll'_ on it.

Issy frowned when he showed it to her. "Don't you think it's a little low-cut? I think my scars will show."

House shrugged: "You'll look hot in it, but if you only want to wear it around the house, I'm getting you this one too."

He picked out a distressed red tee shirt with a picture of a guitar on the front. Issy smiled her approval and House plunked down his credit card for the purchases.

They talked about the Museum all the way back to Akron. After all of the stress of the trial, it had been a good way to relax for the day.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Adam Howard set up the meeting with the funeral director for 10AM on Thursday. Clarence Gavin had a very calm demeanor and looked every bit the part of a funeral director.

He clasped Issy's hand with both of his. "Miss Walker, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm just sorry it is under these circumstances. Your dad was a year ahead of me in school and while I didn't know him very well, I do remember the time that he, Hank Dillon and Bob Brockston set off that stink bomb in the teachers' lounge. It was two weeks before the teachers could use that room again. Those three were such rascals."

House chuckled: "That's one story that the guys didn't tell us."

Gavin went on: "Did you heard the one about them flipping the algebra teacher's Volkswagen?"

Issy giggled: "Yes, Flaco told us that one. I can't believe my dad was such a scamp when he was younger."

"He had his wild moments, no doubt. I'm sure there will be a lot of reminiscing at the funeral on Saturday. I've heard from several of his old co-workers and I believe we are going to have quite the crowd."

Issy's eyes widened: "Really?"

Gavin nodded. "Oh, yes, in fact Flaco told me to use the West room as it is the largest one that we have. I understand that he is going to give the eulogy, and he is working on some music that he thinks your Dad would have enjoyed. Now, Hank gave me a selection of photos. He wanted you to pick out one to put on the front of the memorial program and one for the display."

Tears flowed down Issy's cheeks as she flipped through the photos searching for just the right one. Finally, she picked out a photo where her Dad had a big smile on his face. "This one."

"Do you want that one on the program or for the display?"

"I'd like it for both. He looks really happy in this picture and that's how I want him to be remembered."

"Excellent choice. Now, the program will have his photo on the front along with the appropriate dates. On the inside, we can print a prayer or a poem or some other saying if you'd like. I took the liberty of selecting a few poems for you to read. See if there is anything here that you like."

Issy decided on the second poem. It was very short, but summed up exactly what she wanted to say. That detail taken care of, they moved on to the selection of the casket. She was clearly uncomfortable dealing with this task, and quickly pointed to an oak casket with brass handles.

Taking note of her discomfort, Gavin said: "Nice selection. May I suggest a navy blue satin lining? I know your dad was a big Bears fan and we have Bears blue."

Issy gave him a small smile. "Yes, that would be fine."

They left that room and moved back to Gavin's office. He showed them a map of the cemetery, which was only one short block away from the funeral home, pointing out where her dad would be buried and the location of her grandparents' graves. Their business concluded, Gavin shook their hands and they departed.

Once they were back in the car, House turned to Issy and asked: "What do you want to do now, sweetheart? We have the rest of the day ahead of us."

Issy thought for a moment. It was really happening. She was holding a funeral for her dad. While she had expected only a few people to show up, like Flaco and Hank, Mr. Gavin indicated that there was going to be a crowd. It made her a bit nervous, but also pleased that so many people wanted to come and pay their final respects. She had worn her plum dress to the trial and, even with the black jacket over it; she decided that she didn't want to wear it to the funeral. And her black wool pants were not dressy enough in her opinion for an event of this magnitude.

Mind made up, she announced: "I think I want to get a new dress for the service. Let's go find the mall."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The Chapel Hill Mall was on the northeast side of town. It was not a long drive and they easily found a handicapped parking space. They headed to Macy's first. It didn't take Issy long to find a simple black dress that suited her needs. She already had shoes and the other items that she needed, but she seemed content to continue to browse so House just followed along. He figured that she needed a distraction after the emotional angst of the morning and would let her know when his leg got tired. He had brought his dark suit with him, in the hope that she would feel up to having the funeral on this trip, so he was prepared, clothing-wise, however, when Issy insisted on buying him a silver, navy and black striped tie, he quickly agreed to wear it on Saturday.

They took their time strolling the mall, having lunch in the food court and browsing in the shops. As they passed the Chapel Hill Sports store, House noticed an advertisement for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. He made a mental note of that; if they had nothing to do tomorrow, it would be a good place to spend a few hours. They wandered into the store and started looking around. The store contained all types of sports accessories and memorabilia for the professional and college teams. Naturally Issy wandered into the Chicago Bears area and browsed around. House was amused at the type of merchandise and started picking up things that he thought Issy would like. A pair of navy flip-flops embellished with the orange _'C'_ went into the basket followed by some ankle socks decorated with the big _'C'_ on some and the word _'Bears'_ on the others. A distressed navy blue hoodie sweatshirt with the Chicago Bears emblem on the back was next. He was just examining a pair of navy thong panties emblazed with the big _'C'_ when he heard Issy squeal. He tossed the panties into the basket and limped over to where she was standing.

She was examining a blanket. It had the big Chicago _'C'_ emblem on it, under that was the word _'BEARS'_ and below that, the words _'Super Bowl XX Champions'. _

When she saw Greg, she said: "Look at this! I swear Daddy had this exact blanket. When he'd fall asleep in the recliner, I'd cover him up with it. I wonder what ever happened to it."

Her face fell: "I bet _she_ threw it out with all of his other stuff after she killed him. I bet it rotted in the trunk of his car along with all his other things."

He put his arm around her to extend some comfort. "You're probably right, baby. It's kinda cool that they have the exact same blanket, though. Let's get it and take it home with us."

Issy jutted her chin out in what House had learned was her stubborn gesture. "No, it's not going home with us. I want to do something else with it."

She bit her bottom lip and then went on: "You'll probably think it's stupid."

House shook his head. "No, I won't. Tell me what you want to do."

"I've seen pictures of funerals where they cover the casket with the American flag. I guess that's for veterans, right?"

House had been to plenty of military funerals in his youth and knew all about the flag-draped caskets. "Yes, that's right. It's for people who served in the military or on the police force. I'm not sure if they do that for anyone else."

"Well, I want to put this over his casket. He didn't serve in the military, but he loved the Bears. And, and, I w-want to c-cover him up one more t-time."

Issy burst into tears; House dropped everything including his cane and pulled her into his arms. He held her tightly and rubbed her back in a comforting manner. "That's a great idea, baby. I think your Dad would really like that."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

It was a few minutes before Issy calmed down. House kissed away the remnants of her tears and then asked: "OK?"

She nodded miserably. "Yes, I'm sorry that I got so emotional over a stupid blanket."

"It's OK. C'mon. Let's get it and a few other things and get the hell out of here. My leg says it's time for a nap."

They gathered up all of the items and headed to the checkout. Issy rolled her eyes at some of House's purchases, but he could tell that she really liked them. She even promised to model the thong panties for him later.

Just as they pulled into the hotel's parking garage, House's cell phone rang. It was Adam Howard, bursting with excitement. House put the phone on speaker so that both of them could hear.

"I have some good news for you."

_Could Frank have finally agreed to a plea bargain?_

House growled: "Spill it, already."

The news wasn't quite as good as House had hoped, but it wasn't half bad either. Al Bessler decided to plead guilty to a rape of a minor under the age of sixteen. Between the photos, Issy's willingness to testify and Roland Stanley's statement, his attorney finally convinced him that he didn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of winning at trial. His guilty plea kept Issy from having to tell her story all over again and that made House extremely happy.

Howard reported: "His sentence will be fifteen to life, but since he pleaded guilty, he will be eligible for parole after twelve and a half years."

Issy replied: "That's not bad. How long is Roland Stanley serving?"

"The judge cut him a slightly better deal because he was so remorseful. He'll be eligible for parole after ten years. They are both losing their jobs at Goodyear and their pensions will remain frozen for as long as they are incarcerated."

"Wow. You're good. If you got those kinds of sentences for those two, and they only committed one act of rape, I can't wait to see what Frank ends up with."

Howard cautioned: "Remember, these guys pleaded guilty; Frank is going to trial so it will all depend on what the jury convicts him of. The more counts of 'guilty' that he gets, the longer the sentencing."

House interjected: "Did you find out the date of the trial yet?"

"Yes, that was the other thing I was calling to tell you. Frank's trial starts on Tuesday, September 2nd. I would plan on being here for at least three days, but I don't think it will take longer than that. It will be a somewhat more drawn out version of what happened this week, but you'll need to be prepared to answer some questions about your dancing career. I'm sure that his sleazeball lawyer will ask about it, and there's a good chance that this time the judge will allow it."

Issy answered: "I understand. I'll be ready for it."

After promising to see them at the funeral on Saturday, Howard ended the call.

Issy placed her hand on House's shoulder and said: "I don't know about you, but I'm ready for a nap."

He nodded: "Me too, baby. Let's get upstairs."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

_Friday June 27__th__, 2008 _

On Friday morning, Issy called Mr. Gavin at the funeral home. "I have a Chicago Bears blanket that I want to drape over Daddy's casket. Will that be OK?"

Mr. Gavin replied: "Certainly. Do you want to bring it by now, or put it in place right before the service?"

"I'd like to put it on right before the service tomorrow if that's OK."

"That will be fine."

Issy fidgeted in a nervous manner. "Is there anything else that I need to be doing? I feel like everyone else is doing stuff and that I'm doing nothing. Shouldn't I be doing something?"

"Isabelle, everything is under control. Flaco and Hank are taking care of the ceremony. You should just try to relax as best you can. All you need to do is be here about 45 minutes before we are to start. That way, you can place the blanket and have a few minutes to say a private good-bye if you wish."

Issy gulped; she hadn't thought of that. "OK. We'll be there a little early. Thank you for everything, Mr. Gavin."

When she hung up the phone, Issy repeated to House what Mr. Gavin had told her.

"So we have a free day, baby. Is there anything that you'd like to do today?"

Careful of his leg, she climbed into his lap and buried her face into his neck. He wrapped his arms around her and rocked her gently. Finally she whispered: "Distract me."

He kissed the top of her head. "You got it."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The Pro Football Hall of Fame was in nearby Canton. The concierge gave them driving directions and also recommended a nearby open-flame barbeque restaurant with the best ribs around. The museum proved to be a great distraction as there was so much to see and do. Of course, each team had its own section so a visit to the Chicago Bears section was first on the list. There was a room with busts of the Hall of Fame players and another section where all the records were listed. There was another hall on the history of the game and Issy really enjoyed reading about the early years. They stayed until the museum closed at 5PM and then headed over to Hog Heaven to eat.

The restaurant lived up to its reputation. The rib meat was so tender that it fell right off of the bone. The baked beans were smoky and the French fries were perfect. House polished off a full rack of ribs while Issy got a half rack of ribs and eight wings. What she didn't eat, House finished off for her. Completely stuffed, they waddled back to the car for the short drive back to Akron.

Just as House was turning the key in the ignition, Issy leaned over and kissed his cheek.

He smiled: "Hmmm, nice, what did I do to deserve that?"

"That's just a little thank you for distracting me today."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her: "I have more planned."

Her smile grew wider. "I was hoping you'd say that."


	88. Chapter 88

**To all who asked: My new dog's name is Ava. She's a rescued English Staffordshire Terrier Mix, very very sweet, loves to give kisses, loves every person that she meets. Thanks for asking about her and if you are interested in a furbaby of your own, I urge you to look on Petfinder. com or at your local animal shelter. **

**Now, it's time for the tissues. **

**Chapter 88**

_Saturday June 28__th__, 2008_

Wilson had offered to fly out for the funeral, but House had turned him down. While he appreciated the gesture, Issy seemed to have plenty of support from her dad's old friends and it seemed unnecessary for Wilson to take the time off from work.

As they dressed on Saturday morning, he began to second-guess his decision. Issy was so tense that House thought she might crack in two; she might have felt better having Wilson and Natalie here after all. Well, it was too late now. He'd have to be her sole source of support if necessary, although he felt confident that Flaco and Hank would do their part.

The service was to start at 11AM, so House and Issy arrived at the funeral home around 10:15AM. Despite the sad occasion, Issy looked very nice in her new dress and black heels. She told House how handsome he looked and that the tie brought out the blue in his eyes.

Mr. Gavin met them at the door and escorted them into his office. He offered them a seat and said: "I thought you'd like to see the program."

When Issy nodded, he handed a copy to her.

It was tastefully done. On the front was the photo of her dad. The words above the photo said: _'In Loving Memory'_ and underneath was printed:

_John William Walker,_

_Beloved Father,_

_March 3, 1954,_

_November 2, 1990_

The poem was on the left hand page of the inside of the program. It read:

_A gift for such a little while,__  
__your loss just seems so wrong,__  
__you should not have left before us,__  
__it's with loved ones you belong._

And on the right hand side was a short obituary, the same one that had appeared in today's paper.

_John William Walker of Akron, Ohio passed away on November 2, 1990. He was born on March 3, 1954 to William and Mary Lou Walker. He graduated from Akron High School on June 10__th__, 1972. John had been employed at Goodyear Tire Company from 1972 until his untimely death. _

_He leaves behind to mourn him, his daughter, Isabelle Caroline Walker of Princeton, New Jersey and a multitude of local friends. He will be well remembered as a loving father, a loyal friend and a passionate Chicago Bears fan._

_Funeral services will be held at Gavin Brothers Funeral Home, Akron, Ohio, at 11AM June 28, 2008. Burial at Forest Meadows Cemetery will follow.__Memorial contributions may be sent to the Victim's Advocate Fund of Ohio._

After allowing Issy some time to look it over, Gavin inquired: "I hope it meets with your approval."

Issy nodded: "Yes, Mr. Gavin. It's just perfect."

"I see you have the blanket with you. Would you like to go to the West room now and have a few minutes alone with your dad?"

Issy bit her lip, trying to keep her emotions in check, and then nodded her head. The three of them walked to the West room, Issy holding tightly to House's hand. She let out a gasp when she saw the numerous flower arrangements scattered around the room.

"Omigawd! Where did all the flowers come from?"

Gavin answered: "I didn't recognize all of the names, but your Dad had a lot of friends. Perhaps you might want to look at the cards for a moment."

About half of the names seemed vaguely familiar to her; they were probably old coworkers of her Daddy's. She drew a complete blank on others. There was an arrangement that was simply signed: _'The teachers and staff of Akron High School'_. Wilson and Natalie sent a nice arrangement, as did House's former and current team.

Almost in tears, Issy whispered: "That was so nice of them. And look at this big wreath. Who sent that?"

House opened the card and handed it to her. Issy read it out loud. " '_From your family at Goodyear Tire'_. It's from the whole plant. How nice of them to remember Daddy after all these years."

"He's still one of them, sweetheart. If he were still alive, I'm sure he'd still be working there, just like Hank and Flaco."

Issy nodded. "That's true."

Gavin said: "We'll be sure and save all the cards for you. The visitors are requested to sign the guest book and that will be yours also. Do you need some assistance with the blanket?"

"No, thank you, Mr. Gavin. I can manage."

Still concerned about her emotional state, House asked: "Issy, do you want me to stay with you?"

This time, she shook her head. "I'll be OK. I just need a few minutes."

House squeezed her hand and then the two men walked to the back of the room to give her some privacy. House kept an eye on her; ready to rush to her side if she demonstrated any extreme emotional outbursts.

Issy nervously approached the casket and laid one hand on it. "Hi, Daddy. I know you can't really hear me, but this is the closest that I've been to you in eighteen years and I just wanted to tell you a few things. I've missed you, Daddy; I've missed you so much. For a long time, I was really upset with you. I couldn't understand how you could have gone away and left me behind. But now I know the truth. You never left me. You were taken away from me."

She teared up and then went on: "A lot of bad things happened after you left, but I'm working really hard now to make sure that all the bad people get punished. Arlene is in jail for killing you and for allowing Frank to abuse me. I'm hoping that when his trial comes up in September that I can put him away for a very long time."

She rubbed her hand against the top of the casket. "Some good stuff happened too. I graduated from nursing school. All I have to do now is take my nursing boards and I'll be a full-fledged nurse. And I met a wonderful man. I think you'd like him. He's kinda gruff on the exterior, but deep down inside, he has a heart of gold and he loves me so much. He asked me to marry him and gave me a really nice diamond ring. I wish you were going to be here to give me away when I get married. I'd like that more than anything, but I know it isn't possible."

Issy choked up for a moment as she pictured her dad dressed in a tux walking her down the aisle and then she went on. "I'm just glad that you are finally out of the car. It really upset me to think about you being under the water all that time. Now you'll have a proper resting place, in the cemetery, not too far from your parents and I'll come and visit you whenever I get back to Akron. I still watch the Bears, Daddy, and while it's fun watching them with Greg, it's just not the same without you. I really loved those Sunday afternoons with you and Flaco watching them play. Remember when you'd fall asleep in the recliner and I'd cover you up with your Super Bowl blanket? Well, Greg and I found one in the sporting goods store and I bought it for you. For old times' sake, Daddy, I'm covering you up one last time. I don't really believe in an afterlife, but if there is one, I'll be really happy to see you again. And thanks for visiting me in my dream and telling me to go back to Greg. I hated to see you leave again, but you were right. He does love me and he will take good care of me. I love you, Daddy; I'll always love you. Sleep well."

With those last words, Issy unfolded the blanket and spread it out over the casket. She tugged here and there, making sure that it hung perfectly straight. When she was finally satisfied, she gave the coffin one last pat and then turned and walked back to House.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Gavin took them back to his office to rest while he attended to a few more details. They sat quietly together, Issy's head resting on House's shoulder, until Gavin came back.

"The room is filling up. Flaco, of course, has saved two seats in the front for you, but I'm sure it will be standing room only by the time we start the service. Are you ready to take your seats?"

Shaking her head in disbelief, Issy stood up. "I still can't believe that so many people are coming. I never expected this."

Gavin steered them toward the West room. Issy could see that there were a dozen or so people lined up to sign the guest book. Suddenly she stopped, tilting her head: "Do I hear Clapton?"

_Then we'd go running on faith_

_All of our dreams would come true._

_And the world will be right_

_When love comes over me and you_

_._

Gavin nodded. "Yes. Flaco said that he was going to play a selection of your Dad's favorite singers. Apparently Clapton was one of his favorites."

Issy looked stunned: "Why don't I remember that?"

House smiled at her. "Apparently your subconscious remembered, baby. Either that or it's _genetic_ that your favorite singer is also your dad's favorite."

Issy just shook her head and then they continued into the room. Just as Gavin had said, it was standing room only. As they made their way up the aisle, people reached out to shake Issy's hand and extend their sympathies. She graciously accepted their kindness although more often than not, she had no idea to whom she was speaking. Adam Howard and Shelly Zook were there; Detectives McWhorter and Jennings had managed to claim aisle seats and Issy was pleased to see their familiar faces.

House was impressed by the turnout, although not as surprised as Issy was. He figured that Flaco would pull in a decent-sized crowd to give his best friend a good send-off. And he had definitely picked some good music. By the time they reached their seats, _'Knockin' on Heaven's Door'_ was playing. How apropos, he thought.

Flaco, Hank and their wives occupied the rest of the front row. Flaco gave Issy's hand a squeeze and said: "If you're ready, I'll get started."

Issy nodded. "I'm ready."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

At the podium, Flaco tapped the microphone to ensure that it was on and then began. "Thank you all for coming to John Walker's memorial service. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Bob Brockston."

A voice from the back of the room yelled out: "Flaco!"

He chuckled and went on: "Yes, that is my better known alias. To continue, we are gathered here today, to mourn the loss of John Walker, a man that was a good father and a great friend, who was taken from us almost eighteen years ago. We had been told at that time that he had simply left town, abandoning his daughter, his friends and his job, and while several of us were suspicious about that tale, the truth unfortunately did not come out until just a couple of weeks ago."

He paused and took a sip of water before continuing.

"John and I met when my family moved in just two doors down from his. At the tender age of three, we became best friends, a friendship that lasted all the way until his death. We got into all kinds of scrapes together; I'm sure that there are some folks here who still remember the stink bomb incident of 1971. I stand before you, confessing to that crime, along with my co-conspirators John Walker and Hank Dillon. Hopefully, we're too old now for detention."

That brought a chuckle from the crowd.

"And there was the time Mr. Roman walked out to the parking lot to find his Volkswagen had been flipped onto its side. We got caught on that one and the time we put the red food coloring in the water fountains. The three of us pulled quite a few capers over the years. Despite all of that, we still managed to graduate from high school and get good jobs at Goodyear, where we still played a prank or two. Eventually we all married and settled down."

"Those of you who knew John Walker, knew that there were two things that he loved above all others. The first was his lovely daughter, Isabelle, and the second was the Chicago Bears. When Isabelle was born, John was the happiest man alive. That photo that you see on your program is a picture of him the day that he came back to work after her birth. He was passing out cigars and had that huge grin on his face. A couple of the guys teased him about not getting a son, and his response was: 'Who needs a boy when I've got the prettiest baby in town?'

Issy pressed her hands to her mouth, tears brimming in her eyes. She had picked out that photo because her dad looked so happy in it. Now she knew the real reason why he had been so happy. It had been because of her.

Flaco smiled at her: "And he never stopped saying that about you, Isabelle. He constantly bragged that he had the prettiest baby in all of Akron, if not the state of Ohio. Your picture hung on his locker and when you got older, he hung your drawings there too. By the way, I saved a couple of them for you from when Hank and I had to clean out his locker. I'll give them to you after the service."

Tears rolled down Issy's cheeks; she couldn't believe that Flaco had saved those silly crayon drawings all these years.

Everyone could hear the tinge of anger in his voice. "It was a damn shame that you had to grow up without him."

Flaco paused to get his emotions under control and then he said: "His other great love was for the Chicago Bears. We spent many a pleasant Sunday together, splitting a six-pack of beer and watching the game. When Issy got old enough, she watched it with us, although we didn't let her have any beer."

That produced a chuckle from the crowd; Flaco grinned and went on. "Issy, you're too young to remember the 1985 season, but that was the year that our team went to the Super Bowl. I think the two best dates in John Walker's life were May 30, 1982 when you were born, and January 26, 1986 when the Bears beat the Patriots to win the Super Bowl. If I remember correctly, you fell asleep in his lap during the half-time show. I couldn't blame ya; that was one boring half-time show."

Again his comment produced laughter from the crowd. Flaco paused for a moment and then went on: "I could go on and on telling stories about John, but we don't have all weekend and it would take at least that long to cover the highlights. Let me just share this one with you."

"In Mrs. Turner's sixth grade English class, we students all had to memorize a poem and recite it in front of the class. It could be any poem that we wanted as long as it had at least twelve lines. I'd like to read to you the poem that John recited that day. I always meant to ask him why he picked that one, but I never got around to it. It's called: _'Play Jolly Music at My Funeral'._

I've taken in recent years to thinking about my funeral  
and have decided to make one paramount request:  
play jolly music at that ritual.  
What good does it do to heap on dirges  
or other mournful melodies?  
I won't be there to be gratified by the grieving  
and if I could tune in  
I'd be happier to see those present have some relief.  
Dixieland would be nice.  
Joplin would be fine.  
Something by Fats Waller would certainly do.  
Those early jazzmen knew what they were up to  
when they set about making funeral marches swing.  
So swing me away, please, with a rousing tune.

Flaco paused for a moment and then went on. "Reading this poem back in the sixth grade doesn't exactly make it a last request, but I felt that I should honor it as such. And with the help of some of the members of the Akron High School Marching Band, we're going to swing John away with a rousing tune."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The pallbearers, including Hank Dillon, picked up the casket and set it on their shoulders. They walked slowly up the aisle with Issy and House following directly behind it. As they passed, other members of the crowd fell in behind them.

The band was waiting outside. House studied them with great interest. The brass section was well represented with two tubas, three trombones, and four trumpets. The rest of the band consisted of three clarinets, one alto sax, one tenor sax, a bass drummer, two snare drummers and a drum major. As soon as the casket appeared, the drum major blew two short toots on his whistle and they fell into formation directly in front of the pallbearers. Three toots of the drum major's whistle and they started marching in place and playing a jazzy version of _'Down by the Riverside'_. One more toot on the whistle and the band started moving forward. The pallbearers followed the band and everyone else followed behind.

The pace was sedate and easy for House to keep up with. Issy walked by his side, tightly clutching his hand.

The band members didn't exactly march to the beat; they danced and boogied and swung their horns around as if they were playing at a party. House was surprised to hear a high school band playing Big Bad Voodoo Daddy's _'King of Swing'_, but their rendition was rather good. A jazzy version of _'In the Sweet Bye and Bye'_ brought them all the way to the gravesite.

Once everyone was assembled at the site, and the casket was set down, the band burst into _'When the Saints Go Marching In'_. At least half of the crowd sang along with the band.

When the last notes of the song had faded away, Flaco again addressed the crowd. "Thank you all for coming. I don't intend to hog the microphone all day. If anyone would like to say a few words, please raise your hand and I'll pass you the mike."

To Issy's surprise, hands went up all over the crowd. Person after person spoke and all praised John Walker as a nice guy, a good father and a great friend. Finally the microphone made its way back to Flaco. Before he could say anything, Issy motioned for the mike.

She gripped it tightly in her hand and took a deep calming breath before speaking. "Hi, everyone. In case you don't know me, I'm Isabelle Walker. I just wanted to thank all of you for coming out here today to remember my Daddy. You have no idea how much it means to me to have so many people come out to pay their respects so many years after he left us. I can't thank you enough."

She felt tears pooling in her eyes and a big lump in her throat; quickly she handed the microphone back to Flaco.

House put a comforting arm around her shoulder and together they listened to Flaco's next words.

"Again, I thank you all for coming. There will be refreshments served at the VFW Hall on the next block. Come on over and drink one last toast to John. The band will lead the way."

The band cranked up _'I'll Fly Away'_ and turned back towards the cemetery gate. The crowd started to follow along. Some tossed flowers on top of the casket as they went past. Gavin appeared at Issy's side with three red roses. Silently he handed them to Issy.

She nodded her appreciation, waiting until almost everyone had left before approaching the casket. In the presence of just House, Gavin, Hank, Flaco and their wives, she gently laid the three roses on top of the now flower-strewn casket. In a quiet voice, she whispered: "Goodbye Daddy."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The next two hours were a whirlwind of events to Issy. Person after person approached her, offering their sympathies, sharing their memories, shaking her hand or hugging her neck. Perhaps the most wonderful part were the little gifts that people brought her. Hank or Flaco must have spread the word about Issy having so few photos of her dad. People brought her single snapshots, envelopes stuffed with photos, and even small photo albums; one of her dad's contemporaries brought her a copy of their senior high school yearbook. Issy was thrilled to receive so many mementos of her dad and was overwhelmed with gratitude.

The ladies of the VFW auxiliary had outdone themselves with refreshments. There were little finger sandwiches, olives and home-made pickles, crackers and cheese, the usual jello mold with suspended fruit, and a large assortment of cakes of all flavors. House insisted that she eat a couple of finger sandwiches just to keep her strength up.

At one point a group of women approached Issy and House. Five of the women were younger, around Issy's age, but the woman leading the pack was at least twenty years older. She was a muscular, compactly built woman, who looked distinctly out of place wearing a dress. House could see the exact moment when the light bulb went on in Issy's brain and she realized who these women were.

Issy squealed: "Coach! Oomigod! Coach, you came! And the whole team! I can't believe it. Greg, this is my track coach, Joyce Henderson and this is Amy Lou, Jennie, Michelle, Loretta and Robin."

House nodded a greeting and then just stood back and watched as the ladies squealed like schoolgirls again. They gabbed a mile a minute, in the way that only girls can, and it put a smile on his face to see Issy so happy.

After a few minutes, the coach presented a shopping bag to Issy. "I held on to this for eighteen years in the hopes that I'd see you again. I'm really glad that I'm finally able to give this to you."

With a puzzled expression on her face, Issy reached into the bag. The look of delight on her face made House wish he had a camera. The bag contained a trophy. The small plaque on the front read: _'Isabelle Walker. First place—mile. Tri-county track meet. May 16__th__, 1998'._

"Oomigod, Greg! Look! It's my trophy for winning the mile that day. Can you believe it?"

House smiled: "That's great, baby."

Issy hugged the Coach's neck. "Thank you so much! I can't believe you held onto it all this time. Oh! I just remembered; I still owe you twenty dollars."

This time it was the Coach that had tears in her eyes. "No, you don't. I think you repaid that debt a long time ago."

Before Issy could ask what she meant by that, another group of well-wishers stole her attention and the Coach and the team faded into the crowd.

Just as the event was dying down, and House was planning their escape back to the hotel, Detectives Jennings and McWhorter approached them. The younger detective had a shopping bag dangling from one hand.

Jennings began: "Issy, we have something to tell you. You know, with the search warrant, we had permission to search the whole house. We had to check out everything because we didn't know where else there could be evidence in addition to the one spot that you told us about."

Issy looked frightened. "D-did you f-find s-something else, b-besides the p-photos?"

House wrapped his arm protectively around her, and said in a low, but angry tone. "Are you saying that you found more evidence? Why are you telling us about it _now_? Why didn't you just turn it over to the attorney?"

McWhorter shrugged. "Cuz it's not evidence. Buried way back in the attic, we found an old movie projector and some films. We had to watch each one, cuz, after all, there could have been evidence on them. Some of the films were so old and brittle that they fell apart and I'm real sorry about that. But we got our techs to transfer the contents over to DVD's and made copies for you. Here ya go."

He held out the shopping bag to Issy. She stared at the bag as if there were poisonous snakes in it. "B-but w-what was on the films?"

In a gentle tone, McWhorter answered: "They were home movies. Stuff your parents shot in happier days. You and your dad making a snowman, opening presents at Christmas, birthday parties, stuff like that."

Jennings went on: "They were just the old-fashioned kind of home movies, so there's no sound, but you still can play the DVD's on your computer and have a silent movie."

Stunned by this amazing gift, Issy silently accepted the proffered bag from Detective McWhorter and gave both men a hug. House shook the hands of both men and thanked them for Issy's sake.

Once they had walked away, House pulled Issy into him arms and inquired: "Are you OK?"

Her body trembled with emotion; her reply was a whimper: "I wanna go home."

"You want to go back to the hotel?"

She shook her head. "No, I want to go _home._"

"Back to Princeton?"

A vigorous nod was the answer.

He kissed the top of her head. "I'll call the airlines and get our flight booked."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

The trial and the funeral had taken an emotional toll on Issy. She spent the first two days back in Princeton lounging around in her pajamas, watching TV and flipping through a couple of Bridal magazines that she had picked up at the airport. The photos and the DVD's went into the closet for now; House could clearly see that she was not ready to watch those old home movies yet. On the third day after their return from Akron, something happened to perk up Issy's spirits. They received an email from the Labrador rescue organization, approving their application as adoptive 'parents' for Linus and Lucy. They already had a date for the closing on the house; it was Monday, July 14th and they were planning on moving in the very next weekend. House was a tad sorry that the dates had worked out that way; he had wanted Saturday, July 19th to be a very special celebration for the two of them and somehow spending the day, unpacking and telling movers what to do didn't seem very celebratory. But he and Issy were both eager to move into the new house, so that in itself would make it a joyous occasion. Once they moved in, they could get the dogs and House knew that would make Issy very happy.

So unbeknownst to Issy, House decided to bump up the date of their 'birthday celebration'. There was just one small ordeal to get through first.

**A/N: The poem is 'Play Jolly Music at My Funeral' by Richard Greene**

**Song lyrics are from "Running on Faith" by Eric Clapton.**


	89. Chapter 89

**Surprise! Early chapter! The week is looking very busy for me and then I'm getting my motherboard replaced on my computer this week! Hopefully that will go well. But since I have all this stuff going on, I'd thought I would post early. Hope you don't mind!**

**Chapter 89**

_Friday July 11__th__, 2008_

Chase shook his head. "I _really_ don't feel comfortable doing it."

Seated on the opposite side of the conference room table, House rolled his eyes. Issy would be here any minute and this issue was still not resolved. "Why not? You did the surgery; you've already seen her _special place_."

"That was _different_. It was an emergency. Why can't Cameron do the exam or Thirteen? What about her regular GYN?"

"Because _you_ did the surgery and for whatever reason, she trusts _you_. And she doesn't have a regular GYN right now; she used to go to Planned Parenthood for all of her girly needs. I want her checked out by a doctor, preferably by the surgeon that did the work on her."

The younger man just sat there, shaking his head.

House huffed: "Where's your man card? I'm pulling it. I can't believe I have to twist your arm to look up a gorgeous woman's hoo-hoo."

Chase slammed his hand on the table. "She's not just any woman; she's _your _fiancée. And I'll be examining her _hoo-hoo_ with you in the room. It's not exactly a relaxing situation for me."

House quietly drove his point home. "It's not that great for her either. You do realize that she's been raped countless times. Can you imagine what it's like for her to allow someone to examine that most intimate part of her body? You have that honor because _you _are the one that she trusts. Now, you can have Cameron or Thirteen in the room with us, but we want you to do the exam. _You_ did the surgery; examine _your_ handiwork and make sure everything has healed up properly so that we can get back to doing the mattress mambo, or not, depending on how things look."

Chase let out a deep sigh. "You'll be razzing me for the rest of my life that I checked out your fiancée's hoo-hoo."

House saw Issy approaching down the hall and stood up to greet her. "I'll harass you about your accent, your hair and the size of your dick, but I will not razz you about this. _This_ is different. Are you going to do it or are you going to make me upset Issy by telling her that we have to find someone else?"

Chase saw the tension on House's face and caved. "I'll do it."

House gave a nod and headed out to meet Issy. Over his shoulder, he tossed back to Chase: "I'll text you when Lane's got the cast off. Bring one of the other girls and meet us in exam room ten."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Issy's driving restriction had ended two weeks earlier and House had taken her car shopping. This time, the Subaru salesman got to take her on a test drive and they ended up buying the Outback wagon. Issy had insisted on using the five thousand dollar reward money towards the car and House had put up the rest. She promised to pay him back but he brushed her offer aside, saying that this was the kind of thing that a _husband_ did for his _wife_. Issy had to smile at that; he would occasionally drop hints about a quickie wedding, but seemed willing to wait until all of her plans were in place. She wasn't going to make him wait much longer; she was equally eager to become his wife.

Things had moved quickly since they had gotten back from Akron. They spend the first week home interviewing movers and taking care of all the numerous little details involved with buying a home and moving their possessions. House had interviewed five piano movers before he finally found one that satisfied him. Everything was finally in place; the closing was next Monday and the move would take place the following Saturday. They would pick up the dogs the following week.

Just this past Monday, House had gone back to work and Issy was on her own for the first time since the kidnapping. While she had plenty of things to do to keep her busy, she was surprised at how anxious that she felt without Greg at her side; a feeling that she was definitely not used to. The events of the last two months had definitely taken a lot out of her and long buried emotions about her childhood were now just barely beneath the surface. She burst into tears at the smallest things and had had a couple more nightmares since that first one in Akron. She stuffed all the photos and the movies in the back of the closet, unable to look at them right now. She tried desperately to keep a lid on her emotions, but they kept boiling to the surface. After she woke up for the third night in a row, screaming in terror, House finally suggested that she needed to talk to someone. He called Dr. Stone who recommended one of her colleagues, another woman who specialized in childhood sexual abuse, and Issy made an appointment to go and see her. Her first visit had been only two days ago, but Issy had warmed to Dr. Greenhut right away and felt comfortable talking to her about these painful issues. It was decided that Issy would see her twice a week until she went back to work and then they would cut back to once a week for as long as Issy felt it was necessary to have a therapist.

And now the big day had finally arrived. Today she would finally get the cast cut off her arm and have a GYN exam to see if she was ready to resume sex or not. She sincerely hoped that everything had healed properly as she wanted life to get back to normal. While Greg was a wonderful lover even while using only his hands and mouth, she wanted to feel joined with him again. She missed that connection with the man she loved. Hopefully, they would get the green light today.

Issy exited the elevator on the fourth floor and walked towards the Conference Room. She could see that Greg and Chase sitting around the table and judging from the look on Greg's face, they were having a rather intense conversation. He glanced up and then said something else to Chase before standing up. Chase nodded and Greg headed towards the door.

He smiled as she approached. "Hey good-looking. What's cooking?"

She waved her left arm with him. "I'll be cooking with two good hands in just a little while."

She jerked her head towards the conference room. "Everything OK in there?"

House put his hand on the small of her back and guided her towards the elevator. "Everything's fine. Chase is just feeling a little shy about checking out your hoo-hoo. I had to tell him that I wouldn't chop off his dick for looking up your skirt while performing his medical duty."

"You did _not_ tell him that."

They entered the empty elevator car. "Not exactly. He just needed some reassurance that you really wanted _him_ to do the exam and not some female GYN."

She replied in a quiet voice: "It's not like he hasn't already seen it."

Something in the tone of her voice alarmed him and he said: "Issy, are you OK with Chase doing it? Cuz if not, I'll find someone else to do the exam."

Issy shook her head. "It's fine. He was my surgeon and I want him to do it. I trust Chase. It's just, sometimes, when I think about how I must have looked when I came into the ER that day, it just, _horrifies_ me that you and everyone else saw me that way. All slashed up and with that broomstick."

She shuddered and put her hands over her eyes; House quickly wrapped his arms around her. "I won't lie to you. It was one of the worst moments of my life. I'm sure that everyone present was pretty freaked out. But it's behind us now. You've healed from your injuries; you're getting the cast off today. Let's focus on the present and our future, like how you are going to look in your wedding dress and, more importantly, on our wedding night."

Issy let out a small chuckle. "I take it that you want me to wear some really sexy lingerie on our wedding night."

House wiggled his eyebrows at her. "You can if you want to, for the _twenty seconds_ that it will be on your body before I take it off. I am going to want to visually _feast_ on my wife's sexy body on our wedding night, and then I'm going to taste every square inch."

Issy reached up and cupped his cheek. "And I'll want to do the same to you."

As the elevator doors opened to the Ortho Floor, House whined: "How much longer do I have to wait to make you mine?"

Issy squeezed his hand tighter. "I'm already yours. That little ceremony just makes it legal."

House groused: "Yeah, and allows me to use a one syllable word instead of a three syllable one."

Issy giggled all the way to Dr. Lane's office.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

A new X-ray was taken to ensure that Issy's arm had healed well. It proved satisfactory so Lane removed her cast.

Issy asked: "I can go running now, right?"

Lane nodded: "Yep. You are medically cleared from my point of view to resume all of your usual activities. I'd take it easy at first, though."

"Oh, I will. I haven't run in six weeks. It will take a little while to get back up to speed again."

Issy thanked him for everything and then the two headed back towards the elevator. House sent Chase a quick text that they were on their way.

When they walked into exam room ten, House was surprised to see not one, not two, but three doctors waiting for their patient. Cameron and Taub had seen fit to join Chase for the exam.

House frowned at Taub: "What are you doing here, short stuff? Chase need a wingman or something?"

Taub rolled his eyes and then said: "I didn't know if you wanted me to examine the breast wounds again or not, so I thought I'd just be here in case I was needed."

House shot Chase a look while jerking his thumb at Taub. "That one never passes up the opportunity to check out a gorgeous naked woman."

Chase growled: "House."

The older doctor held up his hand in faux innocent protest. "I'm just making an observation, that's all."

Wanting to get things back on track and the exam over with quickly, Issy interjected: "I guess I should put on a gown, right?"

Cameron answered: "Yes. We'll just step outside while you slip into the gown. Just open the door when you're ready for us."

The three doctors stepped outside and House firmly closed the door behind them. Issy slipped off her clothes and put on the hospital gown. She climbed up on the exam table and sat with her legs dangling.

"I guess you can let them in now. Let's get this over with."

House cupped her face with his left hand and let his thumb gently caress her cheek. "Are you scared?"

Issy swallowed the lump in her throat before answering. "Only that something might be wrong."

"Have you had any symptoms? Any pain or discharge?"

She shook her head. "I would have told you if I'd had any symptoms."

He brushed his lips on hers. "Good girl. No keeping secrets from your husband unless it involves cool birthday gifts or something like that."

Issy chuckled: "Just when I think I can't possibly love you any more than I already do, you say something like that, and, somehow, my love for you grows even bigger."

Her words made House feel warm all over; he needed to get this exam over with quickly so that they could get out of there and on to the evening's main event. He gave her a quick kiss and said: "I'm going to let them in, OK?"

He waited for her nod and then he moved to the door and let the doctors back in. While House moved to the head of the exam table to hold Issy's hand and be supportive, it was Cameron that moved the stool down to the end of the table.

She smiled at Issy: "I'm going to get you in position and take a look, and then Chase is going to take a look too, OK?"

When Issy nodded, Cameron handed her a blanket and Issy draped it over her knees. Then Issy scooted down into the usual GYN exam position with her feet in the stirrups.

Cameron reached behind her and picked up a speculum. She showed it to Issy and then cupped it in her hands to warm it up a bit. "Are you ready?"

Issy nodded: "Quack, quack. Just like a duck's beak."

Instantly remembering that she had said those words to the Cooper children, Cameron shot Issy a smile. "Yes, just like that. I'm going to slide it in now. Tell me if you feel any pain."

House watched Issy carefully as Cameron did her thing. Issy winced slightly and House caught it immediately. "Does it hurt?"

Issy shook her head. "No, it's just the usual uncomfortable feeling that you get from having a speculum inserted into your vagina."

"Not something that I'm personally familiar with, although the prostate exam isn't much fun either."

Issy squeezed his hand tighter and muttered: "Good deflection."

She closed her eyes as Cameron spread the speculum, locked it into place and aimed the light into her opening. Issy didn't realize that she was holding her breath until Cameron said: "Everything looks fine to me. Dr. Chase, you want to take a look?"

Chase took a deep breath and then slid onto her vacated stool. With the blanket covering her knees, Chase couldn't see Issy's face, which made this exam a bit easier for him. He could pretend that she was just another patient and not his former boss's fiancée. He aimed the light for better visibility and took a good look at his work.

After a few long minutes, he turned off the light, removed the speculum and said: "Everything looks great. It has healed up perfectly. You can resume your former activities now with no more restrictions."

Issy giggled: "I like the way you phrased that, Dr. Chase. Is that medical talk for _'you can screw like bunnies again'_?"

Chase felt the color rise in his face. "You're almost as bad as he is. I swear; you two are perfect for each other. And the answer is: yes, you can screw again, but I'd take it easy the first few times. Go slowly; don't be in a big rush. Your vagina may feel like it's shorter than before, you may need some extra lubrication or to avoid certain positions at first, but that should pass in time. Is that clear enough?"

Issy slid back up the table until she was in a seated position with the blanket draped over her legs. Primly, she replied: "Yes, Dr. Chase, thank you. I really appreciate you taking such good care of me."

He gave her a wink: "The man with the cane would have done me some damage if I hadn't. Take good care of yourself, although I'm sure I'll be seeing you around the hospital when you start working."

They said their good-byes and finally House and Issy were alone. As Issy changed back into her clothes, she asked: "How late are you going to be working tonight?"

House glanced up from the text message that he was sending on his cell phone. "I'm leaving now with you."

"Oh, great! Do you want to go out to eat or go home and do something?"

House wiggled his eyebrows at her: "I wanna do _something_ alright. Let's get out of here."


	90. Chapter 90

**Chapter 90**

They took Issy's car but House insisted on driving. He had checked into the Hilton earlier that day so that he could drop off a bag with a change of clothes and other necessities. The text message that he sent while Issy was dressing was to inform the hotel staff to get part of the surprise ready for their arrival.

House wanted tonight to be special and romantic, the birthday celebration that they didn't have. The apartment was cluttered with boxes, papers and didn't have room service or a Jacuzzi tub so he splurged for the presidential suite at the Hilton.

"What are we doing _here_?"

Issy asked the question as House pulled the car into the Hilton's circular driveway and handed the keys to the valet. He took her arm and guided her toward the elevators.

"We are having a nice romantic birthday celebration, just the two of us."

"But I thought we were doing that on the 19th."

"We're going to be busy moving that day, although I do plan on taking some time to christen the house. Let's see, there are three bedrooms, the living room, the dining room, the family room, the kitchen."

Issy interrupted with a smirk: "Are we going to christen each room?"

"And two bathrooms. You bet we are, sweetheart. Maybe not all on the first day, but we _will_ get to each room."

Issy caught on to his plan. "So since we are going to be busy moving, you moved the birthday celebration up a week. Why didn't you tell me?"

The elevator doors binged open and they stepped into an empty car. House punched the button for the top floor before answering. "I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Good timing, since we just found out that I could have sex again."

House turned to her, gently threading his fingers in her hair. "Even if you couldn't, I still wanted this. Just a little birthday celebration for the two of us."

Issy placed her hand on his scruffy cheek. "You're so sweet."

House rolled his eyes just as the elevator door binged open. "I am _not _sweet."

Issy smirked: "Ri-ight."

They paused outside the door while House fished in his pocket for the keycard. Once the door was opened, he ushered her in with a grand flourish. Issy stepped into the room and then stopped to take it all in. The suite was large; the living room contained a comfortable sectional sofa and a dining area for four. On the coffee table rested a crystal vase containing a dozen red roses. There was a flat screen TV and Bose stereo system that was currently playing some acoustical Clapton tunes. There was a short hallway and Issy could see part of a king sized bed covered with luxurious pillows.

Right next to the couch was a cart containing a bottle of champagne, two glasses and a bowl of chocolate dipped strawberries. That was the part of the surprise that House had sent a quick text about right before leaving PPTH.

Issy tossed her purse on the sofa and wrapped her arms around House's waist. "Oh, Greg, this is lovely."

He leaned against the back of the sofa and pulled her to stand in between his legs. While his hands pressed her tightly against his body, he bent down and slowly brushed his lips against hers. "Happy belated birthday, sweetheart."

Their kiss was slow, as if they were tasting each other for the first time. When they finally broke for air, it was Issy who spoke first.

"Did you have all of this planned back in May for my birthday?"

He picked up the heart pendant that was hanging around her neck, rubbed it with his thumb and then gently laid it down against her skin. "No. All I had planned was to give you that lovely necklace and to tell you that I loved you and that I wanted you to be my real girlfriend. Nothing as fancy as all of this."

She gave him a loving smile. "It would have been perfect, the best birthday ever."

He chuckled: "Well, things got a little screwed up and you got your birthday present late."

She pecked his cheek. "Better late than never."

_Never._ It almost had been. He had come so close to losing her and that fear still resided within him. He tightened his grip on her and buried his face in her neck. He didn't want her to see the emotion that was surely written across his face right now as he remembered the long hours of waiting and wondering if she were going to live or not. He tried hard to keep his emotions under control, but his body shuddered with barely suppressed sobs.

Her fingers threaded through his hair. "Hey, I'm here. I'm not going anywhere without you."

House placed a lingering kiss on her forehead. Issy reached up and cupped his face with both hands. Her own eyes glistened with unshed tears.

This was supposed to be a celebration, not a crying jag. House took a deep breath and said in a casual tone: "So you still want to marry this old man?"

Issy smiled: "More than ever. Do you still want to marry me?"

There was just a slight quiver in her voice as she asked that question; House decided to put her mind completely at ease, as he strained his brain to remember the words.

"I, Gregory House, take you, Isabelle Walker, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward. I promise to love, honor and cherish you, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, in joy and in sorrow, until death we do part."

One lone tear slowly made its way down Issy's cheek as she replied: "I, Isabelle Walker, take you, Gregory House, to be my husband, to have and to hold for this day forward. I promise to love, honor and cherish you, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, in joy and in sorrow, until death we do part. And I promise to bake you all the cookies that you want."

House chuckled at her last line: "And now I get to kiss the bride."

Their lips collided; their tongues danced merrily with each other. The words may not have been legally binding, but to the happy couple, it was as good as if they had said them in front of a judge.

He gestured towards the cart: "How about some champagne to toast the bride and groom?"

Issy nodded, giggling happily. House expertly popped the cork on the champagne and poured two glassfuls. He handed Issy one and then held up his own: "To my beautiful bride. I'm going to get you drunk and claim my martial rights in that nice big bed waiting for us in the next room."

Issy laughed harder and raised her glass in a toast. "To my handsome husband. I'm going to get you a little drunk, but not _too_ drunk and then I'm going to drag you into the bedroom so that we can consummate our marriage."

The left side of House's mouth curled up into a smile. "You won't have to _drag_ me, sweetheart. I'm more than willing."

They curled up on the sofa together, sipping champagne, feeding each other the chocolate dipped strawberries and kissing. They could barely keep their lips off of each other. The bottle was only half gone, when House decided that he couldn't wait any longer.

"Bedroom, wife. It's time for you to do your marital duty."

Issy giggled: "And you, yours."

The rest of the champagne accompanied them as they strolled hand-in-hand into the bedroom. As soon as Issy had set the bottle down on the bedside table, House pulled her into his embrace. He gently kissed her cheek and then whispered in her ear: "There's no rush. If it doesn't happen today, that's OK. I don't want to hurt you."

Issy pressed a kiss to the side of his neck. "You won't."

She gently pushed him until he sat down on the side of the bed and then she stepped in between his legs. He tugged at her blouse until he pulled it out of her jeans and then he ran his hands up her bare back. He deftly unhooked her bra and slid his hands around to cup her breasts. Her nipples quickly peaked under his touch and he smiled. "I think the girls want to come out and play with me."

"You know they do."

Issy started to unbutton her blouse, but House stilled her hands and took over the job. As he undid each button, his lips tasted each inch of exposed skin. The blouse hit the floor and the bra quickly followed. Issy yanked House's tee shirt off of him and tossed it over her shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her down on the bed next to him.

The skin-to-skin contact was delicious and House's arousal quickly grew to the uncomfortable stage. He pressed his 'problem' against Issy's core and she responded by unbuckling his belt and unzipping his jeans. When her small hand reached inside his boxers and wrapped around his cock, he moaned with pleasure. She stroked him as best she could, considering the confines of his clothing. He retaliated by unzipping her jeans and slipping his hand inside until he found her special button.

After a moment, they both groaned in unison. House mumbled: "These jeans have to go."

In one swift moment, he pulled Issy's jeans off and tossed them aside. Aside from her heart necklace, a white lacy thong was the only article of clothing remaining on her body.

He hissed through his teeth. "You. Look. Hot."

Issy tugged at his jeans. "Your turn. These need to go."

House climbed off the bed and quickly removed his jeans and boxers. Completely naked, he climbed back on the bed and lay down next to Issy. His hands cupped her face as he pressed his lips to hers. After a long, delicious lip-lock, House started to kiss his way down her body. He lovingly kissed each scar, her battle wounds, and treated them no differently than the surrounding perfect skin. Her nipples needed a great deal of attention and he happily licked and sucked on them, bringing them to tight little peaks.

Issy writhed with pleasure and anxiously tried to return the affection that was being heaped upon her, but House stilled her with his hand on her belly and a whispered request: "Let me. Please."

He kissed his way down her torso and tongue-fucked her belly button. The thong disappeared with a quick jerk of his hand. He nuzzled her dark curls as he gently parted her thighs in preparation for his favorite treat. The very first tentative lick induced a moan and spurred him onward. His tongue lapped at her lips and took an exploratory poke inside of her. Issy moaned with pleasure and thrust her pelvis closer to him. He lapped at her sweet nectar, relishing the flavor that he'd missed for six long weeks.

When she was dripping wet, he slid a tentative finger inside of her. Issy moaned and begging for more; House slid in a second finger and wiggled them around, expertly finding her G-spot and almost sending her over the edge before pulling back again.

Her hand clutched his shoulder: "I want you inside of me. I want to come while you fuck me.

Her scent and taste had sent his libido into overdrive, now her words sent it into warp speed. His cock was rock hard and he rubbed himself against her leg, feeling ever so much like a complete horndog. With his libido in this state, he feared that he would thrust into her too hard and too fast, possibly injuring her.

He rolled over on his back and said: "Climb on board. Take the reins, baby, and ride me."

Issy quickly straddled him and teased his cock against her slick entrance. Slowly she eased herself down onto his dick.

House moaned; _Christ,_ she was tight. He wasn't going to last long once she started riding him.

It took Issy a few minutes to adjust to Mt. Gregory again. He felt bigger than she remembered and she squeezed her walls around him in a rhythmic manner to help accommodate his size.

That movement alone almost sent House over the edge. But right before he fell, Issy started riding him and he was able to hold out for a little while longer. He watched her face carefully, searching for any sign of pain or discomfort, but all he could see was pleasure, all he could hear were her happy sighs and cries of _'oh god, Greg!'_

He was close again, and wanted her to fall with him. So he licked his thumb and pressed it over her clit. The extra pressure did it; her walls tightened as she fell over the edge with a scream and he fell with her.

Issy collapsed onto his chest. They lay in a sweaty heap, until their heart rate slowed and their breathing returned to normal. When House's cock softened enough to slip out of her, Issy rolled off of him and onto her side.

He pressed a soft kiss to her lips and asked in a sleepy voice. "How ya doing, baby?"

"Pretty damn excellent."

"Me too."

He looked deeply into her eyes. "No pain?"

She shook her head. "Nope, but I think you got bigger since the last time."

He chuckled: "Funny, I was thinking that you got tighter since the last time."

"Well, I guess that's a possibility. It felt good, though, really good, but next time I want you on top."

"I think that could be arranged."

House yawned: "How about a nap, a soak in the Jacuzzi tub, some room service dinner and then a repeat performance?"

Issy snuggled deeper into his embrace. "That's what I call a birthday celebration."


	91. Chapter 91

**Chapter 91**

_Monday July 14__th__, 2008_

Monday found them at the attorney's office, signing the million and one pieces of paper that are needed when you buy a home. House insisted that Issy's name be included on the deed, claiming that there was no reason to wait and change it later when they were legally wed. The mortgage, however, was only in his name, since Issy did not have a job or any credit history. She wanted to be a full participant in this joint investment and didn't really like that, but they would have been charged a higher interest rate if the mortgage company had taken her lack of credit history into consideration. House also took out an insurance policy that would pay off the mortgage in case he died before the age of sixty. He wasn't planning on it, but hell, if you had asked him a year ago, if he'd thought he'd be buying a house and getting married, he would have laughed in your face. He wanted to be sure that Issy would be taken care of in case something happened to him.

After all the papers were signed and they got the keys to the house, they drove over to wander through their new home. As they strolled, arm in arm, through each room, they discussed their plans for each room. Issy spoke about furniture placement and decorating, while House considered the order in which each room would get christened.

On the kitchen island, they found a gift from the previous owner. It was a large wicker picnic basket, with dishes, utensils, a blanket, two wineglasses, a corkscrew and a bottle of merlot. The card read: "Welcome to your new home. I hope you will be as happy here as my wife and I had been."

Issy smiled: "That was nice of him."

House shrugged and examined the bottle of wine. It was a decent merlot. "C'mon, let's take this out back and have ourselves a little picnic."

They spread the blanket out under a tree and House opened the wine. After toasting to their new home, they lounged on the blanket, sipping the wine, and enjoying the pleasant breeze under the shade of the tree.

House glanced around their new yard; the backyard was completely fenced in with a six-foot high board fence. It was completely private. He smiled and turned to face Issy.

"I've thought of one other place that we need to christen."

She smirked: "You mentioned all the rooms in the house including the laundry room and the garage. Where else is there?"

He started pulling her blouse out of her pants and his fingers reached for the soft skin underneath.

"Right here. The backyard."

Issy sputtered: "Out here? We're outside. Someone could see us."

His hands crept higher. "Look around, sweetheart. There's a high fence. No one is going to see us."

She glanced about as if to confirm that there were not prying eyes spying on them. "But, we're _outside_."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "That's part of the thrill. Being naked in the great outdoors is very sexy."

"You're a closet nudist, aren't you?"

He chuckled: "Only with you, babe. I only wanna be nekkid with you. C'mere."

His lips brushed hers as his hand crept up her back. When he found the clasp to her bra, he deftly unfastened it. In a short span of time, the girls were completely exposed and he latched on like a hungry babe.

Despite her initial trepidation at being outside for this activity, Issy quickly got into the game. Clothes were shed and tossed aside as their need for each other grew exponentially. The slight breeze against their naked bodies only heightened the sensual experience.

After they'd both reached the pinnacle of pleasure, and were resting in each other's arms, Issy murmured: "You were right."

House chuckled and pulled her even closer to his body. "I'm always right. What exactly am I right about this time?"

Issy toyed with his chest hair as she spoke: "Being naked outside is very sexy."

"Does that mean you'd want to do this again?"

She gave him a shy smile and nodded. "Yes."

He gave her his most dazzling smile and said: "Gimme fifteen minutes and I'll be ready for round two."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

House went back to work the following day; Issy spent her time alone packing up some of the more fragile items and studying for the Nursing Boards that she would be taking in just a few more weeks. Natalie came over on Thursday to help her with the packing and they tossed questions at each other as they wrapped up items and placed them into boxes.

Wilson and Natalie came over bright and early on Saturday morning to help out. It was the crack of dawn as far as House was concerned, but at least Wilson had brought bagels and coffee to ease the pain of the early rising. The movers arrived not long afterwards and everything kicked into gear. Just as they had finished loading the truck with all of their household items, the piano movers arrived. House stayed at the apartment to supervise them, while the other three followed the movers over to the new place.

It was a long tiring day. House wanted to be sure of two things: that the piano was safely moved and that all of the furniture was in its proper place before the movers took off. He reasoned that they could take their time unpacking the boxes, but he definitely didn't want to be moving furniture around. Issy proved to be a great supervisor, deftly directing the movers as to her desires.

Finally all of the furniture was placed appropriately and the boxes were unloaded. House's piano was in its new home and just needed the tuner who would come over on Monday. Their bed just needed to have the sheets placed on it and then they would be able to sleep on it tonight.

House collapsed onto the sofa with a beer. "That's enough for today. We can unpack boxes tomorrow. And the day after that. _And_ the day after that. Let's get some pizza delivered."

The previous owner had left them a small stack of take-out menus in the kitchen. There were several pizza delivery options and Issy chose the most dog-eared menu, figuring that that one had to have been their favorite. Vito's turned out to be a good choice as the pizzas were delicious. Wilson was impressed, as they had used fresh mushrooms instead of canned ones. House particularly liked their meatballs and pronounced them very tasty.

They stuffed themselves and then sat around digesting, unable to move after the big meal and the exertion of the day.

Wilson glanced around the room and said: "This is really a great place. I can't wait to see how it looks when you have it all furnished and decorated."

House let out a large burp and then said: "That's my wife's job. I just write the checks."

Natalie shot Issy an inquiring look. "He keeps calling you that. Did you guys sneak off to Virginia and have a quickie wedding or something?"

Issy shook her head. "Nope. He just likes to call me that. We are sticking to the wedding plans that I told you about. By the way, you're still going dress shopping with me next week, right?"

Natalie nodded: "Oh, yeah, I wouldn't miss out on that. You are going to be such a princess."

House smirked: "Just be sure that there is some sexy bridal lingerie underneath that princess gown."

Issy giggled and nuzzled his cheek with her nose.

Wilson rolled his eyes. "And that's our cue to go. These two probably want to start christening the house right away."

House smirked: "How do you know we haven't already started? Take that chair that you're sitting on, for instance."

Wilson stood up hurriedly. "Too much information. We'll get going so that you can get on with what you need to do."

House chuckled: "You just wanna be alone with your own squeeze. Whose place are you staying at tonight? And why are you still keeping separate apartments anyway? Move in together, already."

Wilson hissed through his teeth. "We've only been dating for one month. It's a little too soon for that."

"Never stopped you before."

Completely exasperated, Wilson blurted out: "Did you ever stop to consider that maybe I want to do it right this time?"

Then he bit his lip, embarrassed by his emotional outburst.

Natalie stood up and took Wilson's hand. "C'mon, James let's get out of here. They have some _stuff _to do, and you know, now that I think about it, we've never christened my kitchen table. I think we should do that tonight."

Her eyes were twinkling with mischief and that immediately put Wilson _and_ little Jimmy in a better mood. He smiled at his girlfriend and said: "Yes. Let's stay at _your_ place tonight."

Issy giggled and said in a stage whisper to House: "And they think _we're_ bad?"

House nodded. "I think they might be as horny as we are. Hey, you know, we could still do that foursome that I suggested a while back."

Three voices cried out as one: "NO!"

House shrugged: "Can't blame a guy for trying. Again."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

After Wilson and Natalie had departed, House nudged Issy in the ribs and said: "What do you say, let's try out our new shower?"

"Exactly how _many_ rooms do you want to christen tonight?"

"As many as this 49-year-old body can. Seriously, I'm sweaty and exhausted. I was thinking about _just_ washing up in the shower and then falling into bed. We'll have to settle for only christening one room tonight."

"I'm good with that. I'm sweaty and tired too. Let's just make up our bed, so that we can fall into it as soon as we get out of the shower."

House helped Issy make the bed, and then they stripped off and headed into the bathroom. The shower felt so spacious after the tub at the apartment. They laughed like kids as they played 'dueling showerheads', shooting each other with the flow from the hand-held showerheads. Their laughter turned into little sighs of pleasure as their soapy hands washed each other. House's leg threatened to give out and he had to lean against the wall for support as Issy washed his balls and dick. Mt. Gregory was at full salute by the time she rinsed him off. They hurriedly dried each other and fell into bed.

Their kisses and caresses were slow and sensual. House nibbled and licked Issy's most sensitive spots while Issy stroked Mt. Gregory back to his prime. When their excitement peaked, Issy urged House on top of her and let out a deep moan as he slowly pushed inside of her.

"Oh, God, Greg, you feel so good."

House hissed: "You're so tight, baby, so wet for me."

Their bodies rocked together in perfect harmony until Issy fell over the edge with a cry. It only took House three more thrusts to join her in orgasmic bliss. He collapsed on top of her, covering her body with his, and she hugged him even tighter.

After a few moments, he rolled onto his side, bringing Issy with him. Contentedly wrapped up in each other's arms, they shared a few gentle kisses.

House chuckled: "Our first official shag in our new bedroom, and still so many rooms to christen."

Issy giggled: "Welcome home, my love."

His expression turned thoughtful as he brushed an errant strand of hair off of her face: "As long as I have you in my arms, I'm home. I like this place, but I don't need it to be home; I just need you."

His face was more open than Issy had ever seen it. Tears welled in her eyes as she caressed his cheek. "I feel the same way. We could live in a tent and it would be home as long as we had each other."

His big hands caressed the length of her back. He surprised her by softly singing: _"Wherever we're together, that's my home."_

Then he rolled his eyes. "Shit. That was corny. I don't know why that song popped into my head."

"It wasn't corny; I liked it. It's one of my favorite Billy Joel songs."

Then she sang to him: _"Use my body for your bed and my love will keep you warm throughout the night."_

His smile grew broader as he rolled on top on her once again. Right before his lips crashed down on hers, he mumbled: "I think I'll take you up on that offer."

**A/N: Song lyrics, "You're My Home" by Billy Joel.**


	92. Chapter 92

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter, but I'll make it up to you with the next one. Thanks so much for reading!**

**Chapter 92**

It didn't take them long to settle into their new home. By Sunday evening, Issy had the kitchen set up while House had unpacked most of his books and set up the second largest bedroom as the home office. House stayed home from work on Monday and dealt with the piano tuner, while Issy finished unpacking the boxes. By that evening, every box had been unpacked. The house still needed more furniture to fill the spaces, but they would go shopping as time allowed and take their time to find just the right pieces.

On Saturday, they drove out to Pennsylvania to pick up the dogs. They took Issy's car, but House drove as Issy was literally bouncing with excitement. It was love at first sight; Issy was thrilled with the two dogs and played with them in the foster mom's back yard to wear them out for the long drive home. Linus loved chasing the tennis balls more than his sister, but she chased them for a while, before coming over to lie down at House's side.

As they watched Issy continuing to throw the ball for Linus, the foster mom chuckled: "I have a feeling that Lucy is going to be your dog, and Linus will be your wife's dog."

House reached down and petted the dog's silky ears. "They will _both_ be her dogs, but I think Linus will enjoy running with my wife, while Lucy and I hang out in front of the TV."

House's prediction was spot on. Issy tried running with both dogs, but Lucy wasn't really game for it. She ended up staying home and helping House catch up on his soap operas while her brother went running with Issy. House had never had a dog before; his dad had always claimed that they moved too much to have a pet. So he was surprised to find that he enjoyed Lucy's company and started referring to her affectionately as his 'favorite bitch.' When he was holed up in his office, pouring over textbooks and medical journals as he tried to solve another difficult case, he often ran the differential with her. She never contributed to the discussion, but she was a good listener. On more than one occasion, Issy overheard House in the kitchen speaking softly to the dog: "Does my favorite bitch want a cookie? Ask for it."

When Lucy barked to 'ask for it', House would say "Good girl. Here's your cookie. Don't tell your brother or he'll want one too."

Issy never let on that she overheard those conversations; she was pleased that Greg was getting along with the dogs so well.

July rolled into August and after a lot of intensive studying, Issy and Natalie took the Nursing Boards. It was a tense two weeks of waiting, but the results were positive. Both of them passed. House and Wilson proudly took their ladies out for a celebratory dinner at Ruth Chris Steak House. It wasn't House's first choice of where to go, not after that disastrous dinner with his parents, but Natalie had never been, and they did want to take their ladies somewhere extra nice. They had a great time, and in the end, House was glad that Wilson had chosen to go there. It was as if the curse was off the restaurant and House could take Issy there again.

Issy had started working part-time as a graduate nurse while she was waiting for her board results. She had explained to Dr. Cuddy that she only wanted to work part-time for now, as she still had the trial to deal with in September, and Cuddy had quickly agreed to her request. Deciding to bypass the excitement of the ER, Issy accepted the position that she had been offered on the Oncology floor. Sophia was thrilled and it was nice for Issy to be around some familiar faces as she got reacquainted with her chosen profession. Natalie had started working full-time on the Peds floor and at least once a week, they managed to grab the same lunch slot and meet up in the cafeteria. Since she was only working three days a week, Issy still was able to keep up with her twice-weekly visits with Dr. Greenhut. She never said anything to House about her sessions, but he could tell that she was working through a lot of emotional pain. She often came home from her sessions with red-rimmed eyes, and she still had the occasional nightmare. He knew that the trial was also weighing heavily on her mind and was looking forward to having that over with.

One night, a muscle spasm woke House around 2AM. As he fumbled around in the dark for his Vicodin, he realized that there was no warm body in the bed next to him. After he dry-swallowed two tablets and switched on the bedside lamp to confirm that he was alone, he lumbered to his feet and set off to find Issy. He didn't have to go far; he found her curled up on the living room sofa, dogs at her side, and watching her home movies. He was taken aback, as he was positive that the films had been buried in a closet since they had moved in.

Gently he asked: "Whatcha doing out here all by yourself?"

Issy shrugged and said in a small voice. "I wanted to see Daddy."

"You could have woken me up."

"I didn't want to bother you. I'm sure these silly old movies would bore you."

House commanded Linus to get off the couch, and then House claimed his spot. He wrapped his arm tightly around Issy and said: "You never bother me. And besides, I want to see what a cute little kid you were."

"Really?"

He gently stroked her cheek with his thumb. "Really. Start it back up and tell me what I'm looking at."

Issy hit the 'start' button on the remote and the screen came to life again. House could see a younger Flaco and Hank, two small boys, Issy and her dad.

"I'm about six here. Those are Hank's boys, Hank, Jr. and Jimmy. They took us kids fishing at a lake about twenty miles outside of Akron. I caught a little lake trout. You'll see it in a minute."

"You've watched these films before?"

Issy nodded sheepishly.

"Why didn't you tell me, baby? I could have been watching them with you."

"I don't know. I guess, I felt stupid watching them and crying about stuff that happened so long ago. I didn't want you to see me like that."

House stole the remote from her and paused the film. "Look at me, baby."

Issy looked into his big blue eyes; his expression made her feel all warm inside and then his words turned her into goo.

"In joy and in sorrow, remember? That's what the vows say. I know it's not legal yet, but I meant what I said. From that day forth, you are my wife, in joy and in sorrow."

Her face crumbled: "You are the most amazing man. I love you so much."

She buried her head on his shoulder and sobbed. He cradled her, stroked her back and murmured soothing words until she calmed down. He kissed away her tears and then planted a gentle kiss on her lips. "I love you too, baby."

She gave him a smile and snuggled deeper into his embrace. After a few minutes, she was relaxed enough to start the movie again. This time she was a bit more animated in describing the scenes to him.

House enjoyed seeing the movies; Issy was a cute kid and he liked seeing her interact, albeit silently, with her dad, his friends and the two young boys. They finished that DVD and popped in another one. By the end of the second movie, Issy had dozed off, her head resting on House's shoulder. He woke her up enough to get her back to bed.

They slept in until 11AM, and then Issy made him a huge breakfast consisting of scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes. In between mouthfuls of food, House asked in a casual manner: "Do you want to watch any more movies today?"

Issy smiled at him: "I think I'm OK for now. I think I'll just put them away for the time being. We'll watch them another time, OK?"

He picked up her hand, and brought it to his lips for a kiss. "Whenever you want. I'll be right there on the couch next to you."

"Thank you. You're so sweet."

House rolled his eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not sweet?"

Issy giggled: "As long as you keep treating me so nicely, I'll never believe it."

He huffed: "Fine."

They finished their breakfast and House helped Issy clear the table. When the dishes were in the sink, Issy turned around and quickly wrapped her arms around House's waist. As he hugged her back, he could feel some tension in her body, so he asked: "What's up, baby?"

Issy's face was buried in his shirt. In a muffled voice, she answered: "The trial starts in two weeks."

"I know. Are you nervous?"

She nodded. "And scared. I really want him to stay in jail. I'm afraid of what might happen if he got out."

As much as House hated platitudes, he was tempted to use one right now, but his brain could come up with nothing to say that would ease Issy's mind. It all depended on the legal system, which attorney argued the case better and whether the jury believed the evidence enough to convict Frank. A lot was at stake; Frank's conviction and Issy's peace of mind were hanging on the decision of twelve people that they had never met.

There was only one thing that House could say with conviction. "I want him to stay in jail too. And I know you're nervous and scared, but just remember, I'll be right there with you, every step of the way. You're not doing this alone."

She propped her chin on his chest and looked up at him. "No, I won't be alone. My husband will be there with me."

He smiled down at her. "Indeed he will."


	93. Chapter 93

**Chapter 93**

**The Trial**

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to all the Issy's out there. If you are not able to obtain justice, I hope you find peace.**

_Thursday, September 4__th__, 2008_

House held his breath as he watched Issy walk towards the witness stand. After watching how the defense attorney had lit into the other witnesses, he feared for what was about to happen to his fiancée.

It was now the third day of Frank's trial. The first day had been taken up with a lot of motions and other legal bullshit and then Roland Stanley had taken the stand as the first witness for the prosecution. His testimony was basically a repeat of his earlier testimony at Frank's preliminary trial. The defense attorney tried to pick him apart, but Stanley had remained steadfast and calm with his statements. Cheatum had been unable to rattle his cage.

On the second day, Arlene had been transported over from the women's prison to give her testimony. Just like at the preliminary trial, Cheatum hacked it to bits and very little of it remained on the record. Al Bessler was the next to be called, and while he was a somewhat hostile witness, he did admit to witnessing and participating in the events that had happened on that fateful night in May.

By the time Bessler had finished his testimony, it was late in the afternoon and the Judge decided to call a recess until the following morning. Issy was slated to be the prosecution's last witness, so she would take the stand first thing in the morning.

Morning was now here, and House watched as Issy raised her hand and swore to tell the truth. Then Howard began the questioning. Issy remained stoic as she repeated the testimony that she had given back in June. She faltered only when it came time to ID the photos again. He could tell by the pinched look on her face how painful it was to see those pictures again. When Howard walked over to the jury to show them the photos, she buried her face in her hands.

Finally Howard said that he had no more questions for the witness. House sat up straighter. This was the part that he and Issy had been dreading the most, the cross-examination.

Lenny Cheatum got to his feet and took his time buttoning his suit jacket. He began his questioning in a surprising manner: "Ms. Walker, why did you hide your face when Mr. Howard was showing your snapshots to the jury?"

Issy's face paled and her jaw dropped open. Before she could even try to utter a reply, Cheatum went on: "You acted like you were _ashamed_ for people to see you in those photos."

It took Issy a moment to recover her composure. "I am ashamed for people to see me like that. Those pictures are disgusting."

Cheatum replied in a calm manner. "But yet, you posed for them."

"Only because _he_ made me do it."

"_He_? Who is this _he_?"

Issy pointed at the defense table. "Frank Livingstone. He's the one who made me do it."

"Really? He _made_ you pose? Did he also _make _you become a dancer too?"

Howard was on his feet in an instant. "Objection! Relevance!"

Cheatum replied: "This line of questioning is necessary to prove that the witness has an unstable mental history and an unsavory background."

The judge frowned and then said: "I'll allow it for now, but you better get to your point quickly."

From his seat behind Howard's table, House could see the color rise in Issy's cheeks. He could tell that she was angry that this line of questioning was being permitted. _Good._ Better mad than scared.

Cheatum turned back to the witness stand and said in a smug tone: "Please answer the question, Ms Walker."

Issy narrowed her eyes and said: "Yes, Frank made me pose for those photos. No, he didn't make me become a dancer."

"And why did you become a dancer? Because you enjoy flaunting your body just like you did in those photos?"

"I was _twelve_ years old in those photos. I didn't want to pose, but Frank made me. And I do not enjoy flaunting my body. Frank's actions caused me to run away from home at the age of 15. Therefore I never finished high school and decent-paying jobs are hard to find for high school dropouts. However, the money I made from dancing enabled me to put myself through nursing school. I am now a registered nurse at a Princeton hospital."

"Yes, a nurse who was recently in the public eye for assisting in the recovery of two kidnapped children. I'm sure you enjoyed your fifteen minutes of fame."

Howard stood up: "Objection. Is there a question here?"

Cheatum went on: "Yes, there is. Ms. Walker, did you enjoy your moment in the spotlight? Did you miss it when the media's attention went elsewhere?"

"No. I didn't want my name in the papers at all. I was upset that my identity was leaked out to the public."

"Oh, come, come. Your name was in all the papers; you were praised as a hero. You received a five thousand dollar reward from Crimestoppers. Are you going to tell me that you didn't enjoy that one little bit?"

Issy responded in an emphatic tone. "I did not. I'm glad that I could help those little girls, but I didn't want my name in the papers because I didn't want to be found."

Cheatum seemed somewhat taken aback by the answer. "What do you mean, you didn't want to be found?"

"I did not want people from my past discovering where I was. Specifically, I didn't want Frank to find me."

"And why not?"

Issy's fury heightened at his infuriating questions. "Because I knew he would come after me and he did."

"And when he showed up, with your mother, hoping to reforge the family bond that you broke by running away, you decide to make up these phony charges, in order to ruin your parents' lives and put yourself in the spotlight once again."

Issy clenched her hands into fists and hissed: "He is not my parent. My father is _dead,_ killed by my mother; she and Frank Livingstone dumped his body in the reservoir. These are _not_ phony charges; those photos are proof and you have the testimony of others to back up what I've said."

"All we have is the testimony of two men who said that they paid to have sex with a girl. Did they _really_ know that you were underage at the time?"

"Yes, they did. They knew me and they knew I was just in high school."

"Again, it was their actions, and not the actions of Frank Livingstone. There is no proof that these alleged acts happened at all."

Issy cried out: "There are the photos."

Cheatum shrugged: "The photos show someone taking sexual liberties with you, but there is no proof that it is Frank Livingstone."

"You have my testimony, under oath."

"It's still your word against his."

Issy's rage was at the boiling point. "Do you really think that I would put myself through all of this if it wasn't true? Do you think I would allow those photos to be seen or for people to hear what horrible things happened to me? Do you think that I would repeatedly recall these events over and over again if they weren't true?"

After a long pause, Cheatum replied in a calm voice: "Yes, I believe that you would. I think you just want the attention. I have no more questions for this witness, your Honor."

Howard got to his feet: "Redirect, your Honor."

The judge waved his hand to allow it.

"Why exactly did you run away from home at the age of fifteen?"

Issy closed her eyes and took a deep breath; was this ever going to be over?

"I ran away because I couldn't take it anymore. Frank was raping me almost every night. Then he prostituted me out to two of his friends and told me that he was going to continue to do so. It was bad enough that I had to put up with what _he _was doing to me; I just couldn't take a repeat of that night, I was tied to the bed, I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything to stop them."

A small sob escaped and then she said softly: "So I ran away."

In a gentle tone, Howard inquired: "And why did you become a dancer?"

"I was a high school dropout. I had no marketable skills. The only jobs that I could get were in fast food or maid service. Neither of them paid enough for me to be able to move out of the homeless shelter. I kept looking for better positions. I applied for a waitress job at the first club, but since the job involved serving alcohol and I wasn't 21 yet, I didn't qualify for that job, but I was old enough to dance. I had to wear a bikini and dance on the tabletops; it wasn't the greatest job, but it paid well enough for me to be able to move out of the homeless shelter into a small apartment. I kept trying to find other jobs, but nothing paid well enough for me to support myself, even after I got my GED. When I decided to go to nursing school, I needed flexible work hours and good pay in order to be able to do that, so I continued dancing to support myself while I was in school."

"And are you testifying here just for the attention, for the publicity?"

From his seat, House could see the tears in her eyes. He wanted to take her into his arms and comfort her, but that was going to have to wait until she finished testifying.

"No. I wish all of this had never happened. I wish that I had never been raped. I wish that my daddy had never been killed. I wish I could have just grown up in Akron, finished high school, and gone on to work at Goodyear like my dad did. I didn't want to live on the streets, but it was better than staying at home and getting raped every night. I didn't want to dance, but I needed to support myself. And I wish that I wasn't here testifying today, but Frank Livingstone deserves to be punished for what he did to me, and testifying is the only way that I can make it happen."

"Thank you, Ms. Walker. I have no more questions for you at this time."

Issy was released from the witness stand; she hurried up the aisle and collapsed in the chair next to House. She buried her face in her hands while House placed a comforting arm over her shoulders.

Howard announced: "The prosecution rests, your Honor."

The judge addressed the defense attorney. "Call your first witness, Mr. Cheatum."

Cheatum called a couple of Frank's cronies to the stand to testify as to his character. Naturally, they denied any knowledge of Frank's perverted sexual tendencies and swore that he was of good character and a hard worker. One of them even went so far as to expound on what a great guy Frank was for stepping into the role of stepfather after Issy's dad had left town.

While Issy fumed at these blatant lies, House wondered if Cheatum was going to put Frank on the stand or not. It did not seem like a good legal move on his part, as Frank would be either taking the Fifth or committing perjury when answering Howard's questions. Neither seemed like a good option.

After the second character witness stepped down, Frank and Cheatum entered into a whispered yet heated conversation. With a bored expression on his face, the Judge allowed their private talk for a few minutes and then banged his gavel.

"Mr. Cheatum, you can catch up on the jailhouse gossip with your client later. Call your next witness."

Cheatum stood up. Frank opened his mouth, but Cheatum silenced him with a shake of his head. "The defense rests, Your Honor."

The judge actually smirked: "Really? Seems like your client is of a different opinion."

Cheatum repeated firmly: "The defense rests, Your Honor."

The judge banged his gavel again. "So be it. Fifteen minute recess and then we will hear the closing arguments."

Everyone rose while the Judge left the courtroom.

Issy whispered to House: "Wow, Frank's not going to testify. I'm surprised. I figured he was just dying to tell his side of the story."

House shook his head. "His lawyer is smarter than he looks. To put Frank on the stand would have been suicide for the case."

It was a long fifteen-minute break, but finally the Judge returned.

Adam Howard and Lenny Cheatum made their closing arguments. While Cheatum again tried to depict Issy as a mentally unstable woman who wanted attention, and was falsely accusing his innocent client, Howard reminded the jury that a young girl had been raped, repeatedly in her own home, by a man who was supposed to care for her while her mother was at work. This small child grew into a teenager who finally couldn't take the abuse anymore and had run away from home, hoping never to see her abuser again. Unfortunately she had been pushed her into the limelight and her abuser found her again. In front of witnesses at the hospital, he had confessed to abusing her, a statement that he later retracted.

"Isabelle Walker was brave enough to come here today and confront her abuser. I urge you all to do the right thing, and find Frank Livingstone guilty of the charges pending. He deserves to be punished for what he has done. Thank you."

The jury was given their instructions and they filed out. The judge banged his gavel and announced a recess while the jury was deliberating. Everyone rose as the judge left the courtroom.

House and Issy waited at the back of the courtroom for Howard to join them. At his approach, Issy blurted out the question that was foremost on her mind.

"Now what?"

Howard nodded towards the empty jury box and said: "Now, we wait."

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

They wandered out into the hallway. Howard said: "Let's go to the coffee shop downstairs and have a bite of lunch. Shelly will keep an eye on the courtroom and call me if they come back while we're eating."

Although Issy had no appetite whatsoever, she agreed to follow the men down to the coffee shop. House and Howard both ordered burgers and fries, but Issy shook her head at the mention of food.

House knew she was a bundle of nerves, but wanted her to try to eat a little something. "How about some chicken soup? Or a grilled cheese sandwich?"

Issy agreed to the grilled cheese and a Coke, but when the sandwich arrived, she could only manage a couple of bites. Then she picked up the squirt bottle of ketchup and very carefully decorated her French fries.

In a small voice, she asked: "What happens if we lose?"

Howard rushed to reassure her: "We won't lose on everything. He will get some jail time for the pandering charge if nothing else because the evidence is indisputable on that."

"He'll get five years for that, right?"

"Right. And he'll also serve time for the charges connected with your dad's death."

Issy sighed as she continued to paint her fries: "He deserves more. D-do you t-think t-that the jury believed me?"

House put his arm around her; Howard rushed to reassure her.

"They would have to be pretty hard-hearted not to believe you. Shelly was keeping a close eye on their reactions and she told me that several of them were visibly upset by your testimony."

"W-what about the p-photos? I c-couldn't look at the jury w-when they w-were looking at them."

"As a group, they seemed horrified by them. Even that stern looking older man in the back row looked like he had tears in his eyes after viewing them."

Issy mumbled: "Maybe they'll believe me."

Then she pushed her dish away, made a pillow out of her arms and cradled her head on the table. The two men exchanged glances, but there wasn't much that they could do at this point. It was now all up to the jury.

The two men managed to eat a few more bites and then signaled for the check. After paying the bill, they trooped back upstairs to wait for the jury. House and Issy settled on an empty bench; he put his arm around her and she pressed her face into the crook of his neck. Every now and then, he would feel her shudder as if she was trying to suppress tears and he would hold her tighter still.

It seems like forever, but in actuality, it only took the jury three hours to finish their deliberations. The bailiff called everyone back into the courtroom. Issy walked back in with her head held high, her tight grip on House's hand was the only outward sign of how frightened she was. Frank shot her a nasty look, but Issy ignored him, keeping her expression calm.

House watched the jury walk in. They were not looking at Frank. Was that a good sign or not? He tried to remember what that meant from all the courtroom dramas that he had seen.

When the jury was seated, the judge asked: "Has the jury reached a decision?"

The foreman, a tall, thin man in his thirties, rose and answered: "We have, Your Honor."

"Please hand it to the bailiff."

The bailiff passed the message to the judge who read it, and then handed it back to the bailiff, who then returned it to the foreman.

The judge started reading the charges: "Regarding the charge of rape of a minor under the age of twelve, how do you find?"

The foreman answered: "Guilty, Your Honor."

Issy sat up straighter, her hand tightly clenched House's, a look of utter amazement on her face.

The judge went on: "On the charge of sexual battery of a minor under the age of twelve, how do you find?"

The answer was the same: "Guilty, Your Honor."

The judge continuing reading the charges and with every question, the answer was the same: "Guilty."

Frank Livingstone was found guilty of every single charge. He roared in protest and started yelling epithets at the jury. The judge banged his gavel loudly and had the officers remove him from the courtroom.

Issy turned to House. He could see the tears welling in her eyes, but he knew that they were tears of joy.

In a small voice, Issy whispered: "They believed me."

"Yes, they did."

Issy threw her arms around his neck. "Frank's going away for a really long time now, right?"

House embraced her tightly: "I doubt he'll ever be a free man again."

Issy buried her face in the crook of his neck and let out a deep sigh. They huddled in their embrace for a few moments, before Issy whispered: "You know what?"

"What, baby?"

"Detective Benson was right."

House squeezed her even tighter. "I'm glad, baby, I'm so glad."


	94. Chapter 94

**Chapter 94**

**A/N: Thanks to the Philly OC Babes for assisting with some of this chapter. You know who you are. Didn't know it would take me this long to get it written and posted!**

_Saturday October 25__th__, 2008_

As House's original team walked up the path to the front door, Chase commented: "I still can't believe that House is throwing a party."

Cameron added: "And a Halloween costume party of all things."

Two steps behind them, Foreman grumbled: "You _know_ it was Issy's idea. What I can't believe is that House went along with it. He must be seriously in love."

Cameron rolled her eyes even though Foreman couldn't see her. "Of course he is. Have you seen the way he looks at her? He is totally smitten."

Foreman smirked: "House, a smitten kitten? That is just too unbelievable for words."

Chase shrugged his shoulders as he rang the doorbell. "Whether you want to believe it or not, they _are_ engaged and that should tell you something. After all, he lived with Stacy for five years and they never married."

Before Foreman could comment further, the door opened. Three sets of jaws dropped, as the young doctors took in the sight of House in a black tuxedo, complete with tails and a red satin-lined cape. His eyes roamed over the guests and then he gave them an evil grin, exposing a large set of fangs.

In his best Bela Lugosi voice, House intoned: "Good evening. It's nice to see some _fresh_ young blood here tonight. I was getting hungry. Do come in."

With a wave of his arm, he ushered them into the foyer. House indicated where they could drop their coats and stood back to watch as his guests shed their outer garments. He wiggled his eyebrows as Cameron revealed her costume. She had dressed as a ballerina, complete with pink leotard, tulle skirt, tights and toe shoes with ribbons winding up her shapely calves.

He smiled, revealing his fangs: "That's perfect on you, Cameron. And I love that you left your neck bare."

He moved forward as if to sink his teeth into her, but Chase stepped forward, brandishing a whip.

"If anyone's going to be biting Cameron's neck, it will be me, and not you, Count Dracula. You've got your own woman."

House smirked: "You think a mere whip can stop a vampire, Crocodile Dundee? You need a much better weapon than that."

Chase huffed: "I'm not Crocodile Dundee. I'm Indiana Jones. As you so astutely pointed out, this is a whip, not a machete."

House squinted his eyes as he took a good look at Chase's costume. In a decent imitation of Chase's accent, he said: "Naw, them's Aussie togs if you ask me, mate."

Before Chase could form an appropriate response to that, House turned his attention to the last member of the group. Foreman was dressed in a black suit, white shirt, black tie and was wearing dark framed sunglasses. "Ray Charles! So glad you could come and provide the entertainment for tonight. The piano awaits you."

Behind his Foster Grants, Foreman rolled his eyes. "I'm not Ray Charles. I'm one of the team members from _'Men In Black'_. You saw the movie, right?"

House shook his head. "You're no Will Smith, and what I'm thinking is that these two dragged you to this party, you had no costume and was forced to improvise at the last minute."

After all these years, Foreman still hated it when House managed to see right through him. He was glad that he was wearing sunglasses so that House couldn't see the look in his eyes. He really had not wanted to come to the party; he spent enough time during the week with his boss and on Saturday night he felt that he should be able to spend it with whomever he wished. But Chase and Cameron had insisted on his presence and were not willing to take 'no' for an answer. They had even brought him a stupid Batman costume to wear, but he opted for his own attire.

Ignoring Foreman's lack of response, House waved his hand towards the living room. "Come on in. There's plenty of food and some other strangely dressed people that you might want to see."

Strange did not begin to describe it. Dr. Cuddy, the Dean of Medicine, was dressed in a very skimpy Wonder Woman costume that showed off her assets to the max. Thirteen looked stunning dressed as a harem girl, in a black-fringed leopard print halter-top, black velvet pants and numerous sheer veils completing her costume. A very miserable-looking Taub and his wife Rachel were dressed as a couple from ancient Rome; they wore matching togas, olive wreath head pieces and sandals with straps that laced up their calves. The source of Taub's misery was the look of jealousy that he had seen cross his wife's face when she realized just how many good-looking women that her husband worked with. The skimpy Halloween costumes hadn't helped either. It was going to be a long ride home while he got his ass thoroughly chewed out.

Kutner was wearing a hooded black cape and a black mask over his eyes. No one knew whom he was portraying and when asked, the young doctor was surprised that no one recognized the obscure superhero called Shroud. He was heard mumbling: "Doesn't anyone else read Marvel Comics besides me?"

Chase recognized a few of Issy's classmates under their disguises of witch, pirate wench and cheerleader. Looking for the lady of the house, he moved slowly through the crowd. He stumbled across Wilson and Natalie first. Wilson was wearing dark framed glasses, a gray suit, tie askew and the shirt buttons opened to reveal a Superman costume underneath. He explained that he was Clark Kent on his way to locate a phone booth.

Chase replied: "Good luck with that. Everyone has cell phones these days."

Wilson replied: "Tell me about it. A superhero can't find a phone booth when he needs one. How's the outback, Crocodile Dundee?"

In an irritated tone, Chase replied: "I'm not Dundee; I'm Indiana Jones. I've got a whip, not a machete."

Wilson nodded skeptically as he gave Chase's costume the once-over again.

Natalie looked lovely, dressed in a floor length blue gown, elbow-length gloves, silver slippers and a tiara in her upswept hair. She squealed with delight when Chase correctly guessed that she was Cinderella.

He continued to wander, checking out the house, speaking to the people that he knew, munching on hors d'oeuvres and yet all the while wondering where Issy was. House had also disappeared. Just as he was about to start looking for Wilson to ask about the missing hosts, a short, barrel-chested man strutted into the middle of the living room. He looked liked a sheriff straight out of an old John Wayne western. He wore a ten-gallon hat, had a silver star pinned to his long-sleeved western-style shirt and a gun belt slung low around his hips. He pulled one of the pistols out of his belt and shot it up into the air. The noise certainly got everyone's attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Ghosts and ghouls, witches and warlocks, vampires, werewolves and other assorted undead. Please direct your attention over here. There will be a spot of entertainment tonight. I'm Sheriff Harold T. Stone and I'll be one of the participants in tonight's entertainment. Now, if I can ask everyone to gather in the family room."

He expertly directed the bewildered guests into the family room. Long couches lined two of the walls underneath the windows and a number of folding chairs had also been added. The Sheriff asked everyone to find a spot.

"You'll want to be seated for this entertainment. Don't want any of the ladies to get over excited and faint on us. At least if they do, there are a few doctors in the house."

The man laughed at his own joke and then waited while everyone found a seat. A bright flash commanded everyone's attention back to the living room where a man dressed as a cartoonish reporter took another photo of the assembled group.

The sheriff waved his hand in bemusement. "That's just Jimmy Olsen. Don't mind him. He's just trying to score a picture of Superman's real identity. I heard that he was around here somewhere. Anyway, let's get started."

He picked up a remote control and hit a button on it. The thump of hard rock music filled the entire house and attempted to drown out the murmurings of the guests as they wondered amongst themselves what was going on.

_It's getting near dawn,_  
_When lights close their tired eyes._  
_I'll soon be with you my love,_  
_To give you my dawn surprise._  
_I'll be with you darling soon,_  
_I'll be with you when the stars start falling. _

_I've been waiting so long_  
_To be where I'm going_  
_In the sunshine of your love. _

Suddenly the photographer swerved to his left and started shooting across the living room. After a slight costume change, Wilson and Natalie were now walking across the floor. Wilson's suit was now completely buttoned up and his tie was straight. A small blush-colored rose was pinned to his jacket as a boutonnière. Natalie was still wearing the long blue gown, but she had removed the tiara and the gloves and was now carrying a small bouquet of blush-colored roses. As they walked arm-in-arm towards the assembled group, 'Jimmy Olsen' took several photos of the couple. When they reached the Sheriff, they flanked him and turned expectantly in the direction that they had just come.

_I'm with you my love,_  
_The light's shining through on you._  
_Yes, I'm with you my love,_  
_It's the morning and just we two._  
_I'll stay with you darling now,_  
_I'll stay with you till my seas are dried up. _

_I've been waiting so long_  
_I've been waiting so long_  
_I've been waiting so long_  
_To be where I'm going_  
_In the sunshine of your love._

A familiar thump-step preceded him and after a moment, House stepped into view. He had ditched the cape and his lapel was now sporting a blush colored rose boutonnière similar to the one Wilson was wearing. Welding his best cane, he walked to a spot just outside the family room, stopped and held out his left arm in an expectant manner.

_No heartaches felt, no long and lonely_  
_nights of waiting, finally won me_  
_happiness that's all rolled up in you _

_And now with you as inspiration_  
_I look toward a destination_  
_Sunny bright that once before was blue _

_I have no more than I did before_  
_But now I've got all that I need_  
_For I love you and I know you love me _

The hard rock thump of Cream shifted into the more playful notes of the Monkees. After the first bar, it became evident what House was waiting for. Resplendent in a long white dress and veil, Issy stepped into view. The audience let out a collective gasp as she moved to House's side and shifted her bouquet into her left hand so that she could take House's proffered arm with her right.

Cuddy stage-whispered: "This has to be one of House's stunts."

The Sheriff immediately shushed her. House and Issy slowly made their way to the front of the room and took their places in front of the sheriff, with Wilson and Natalie moving to flank them.

_So take my hand I'll start my journey_  
_Free from all the helpless worry_  
_That besets a man when he's alone _

_For strength is mine when we're together_  
_And with you I know I'll never_  
_Have to pass the high road for the low _

_I have no more than I did before_  
_But now I've got all that I need_  
_For I love you and I know you love me_

When the song ended, the short man began: "Dearly beloved and other assembled guests, we gather here tonight to witness the union of Dr. Gregory House to Isabelle Caroline Walker. If there are any amongst you, who object to such a union, speak now or forever hold your piece."

There were a few small murmurs but a glare from House silenced any possible objections.

The Sheriff went on: "All righty then. Since there are no objections, I will proceed. Dr. Gregory House, do you take this woman, Isabelle Walker, to be your lawfully wedded wife? Do you promise to love, honor and cherish her as long as ye both shall live?"

House replied in his deepest voice: "I do."

The man turned to Issy and said: "Isabelle Walker, do you take Dr. Gregory House to be your lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love, honor and cherish him as long as ye both shall live?"

Issy glanced up at the man she loved and replied: "I do."

"Do you have rings?"

House nudged Wilson: "That's your cue."

Wilson reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring box. He opened it to expose the contents and handed it to the Sheriff.

"Dr. House, please take the ring intended for your bride."

Issy handed her bouquet to Natalie and then turned back to face House. He gave her a soft smile as he slipped the ring on her finger. "With this ring, I take you to be my wife. I've already promised to love, honor and cherish you, and I'm not sure what else to say, as that about covers it all. I promise to keep you warm on cold nights, put up with your pain-in-the-ass dogs and to light your fire every chance I get. I won't always remember to put the toilet seat down and I will generally hog the remote, but if you can overlook those little things, I think we can make it until death we do part."

Issy gave him a smile that warmed his heart and threatened to sneak down to his nether regions. He sternly reminded his body to save that response for later on tonight.

The Sheriff asked: "Would the bride take the ring intended for her groom?"

Issy picked up the larger platinum band and slipped it on Greg's finger. She clasped his large hand between her small ones and said: "With this ring, I take you to be my husband. I already promised to love, honor and cherish you, but now I also promise to bake your favorite cookies, make your favorite meals and knock your socks off for the rest of our lives."

They only had eyes for each other. House couldn't wait to kiss her; he knew he had a silly-ass grin on his face that everyone was seeing and the photographer was capturing for future viewing pleasure, but he was beyond caring. His ring was on Issy's finger and she was finally, in every sense of the word, his.

Hands clasped, they turned to face the judge who announced: "By the power invested in me, by the State of New Jersey, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Dr. House, you may kiss your bride."

House took his bride into his arms. Issy wrapped her arms around his neck and squealed as he dipped her backwards.

He whispered to her: "You made me wait long enough."

She smiled back. "The waiting is over. Plant a big one on me, baby."

He chuckled and did just that as the partygoers applauded.

+++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

"Was that for real?"

House recognized the voice that rose above the applause and cheers as Kutner's. Only the boy-in-a-man's-body could have doubted what he had just seen with his own eyes.

With his arm firmly wrapped around Issy's waist, House replied: "Yes, that was real. Meet Judge Harold T. Stone, masquerading as a Sheriff tonight. He is a real live judge and thus able to perform weddings in the state of New Jersey. This poor woman is really truly hitched to me now."

Issy giggled and announced: "And very happy about it too."

Cameron cried out: "Why didn't you tell us? We could have dressed more appropriately for a wedding and brought gifts."

House leered: "You're dressed very appropriately as far as I'm concerned."

Issy cleared her throat.

House made a faux startle, pretending that he was just noticing Issy's presence. "Oops. I can't be saying those kinds of things with the old ball-and-chain around."

Issy pressed herself closer to his side and said: "We did it this way because we didn't want gifts or for anyone to make a big fuss. We wanted it to be a surprise."

House rolled his eyes and muttered: "You didn't want gifts, but if anyone is offering."

At the sound of her joyous laughter, House looked down at his bride. He still couldn't believe that this beautiful woman had agreed to be his wife and put up with his crap for the rest of her life. It was beyond anything that he ever would have imagined happening to him.

Issy reached up with her left hand and cupped his cheek. As cameras and cell phones flashed all around them, she murmured: "Kiss me again, my husband."

House smiled and pressed her ever closer to his body. How fast would they be able to get rid of the guests and get on with the best part of the wedding night?

As he bent his head down to capture her lips with his, he murmured: "Delighted to oblige, my wife."

______

**Song lyrics: "Sunshine of Your Love" by Cream (Eric Clapton)**

"**Papa Gene's Blues" by Michael Nesmith, recorded by the Monkees.**


	95. Chapter 95

**Chapter 95**

House let out a deep sigh as he closed the front door for the final time. "I thought they'd never leave."

_The rest of the party had been a smashing success, albeit a little long as far as House was concerned. Everyone had extended their congratulations to him and had wished Issy the best of luck. Wilson had given a decent champagne toast without expounding upon any of House's terrible character flaws or unsavory past behaviors. The decadent chocolate wedding cake had been cut and they had fed each other a bite. Issy had thrown her bouquet, which had been caught by Cameron; the stunned look on Chase's face upon seeing Cameron's delight at her prize was worth the extra ten minutes of their time spent on that traditional wedding game. Everyone ate and drank and seemed to be having a really good time and all the while, the photographer captured the scenes for future trips down memory lane or blackmail purposes. Finally, when he could stand it no longer, House had given Wilson the eye and his bestest buddy started steering people towards the door. _

Issy gave him a smile. "At least Wilson and Natalie were nice enough to stay and help us clean up."

"That was the one little flaw in our plans, not taking off _immediately_ on our honeymoon and leaving _them_ to deal with the clean-up."

In a teasing tone, Issy replied: "You're right. The next time we get married."

House interrupted her before she could finish that thought. "There will be no next time. Until death we do part and all of that stuff. Although I suppose, since I'm so much older than you, there's a fair chance that you might do this again."

His bride quickly closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around his neck. "How could you say such a thing, especially on our wedding night? There is no one who could ever take your place. To me, you are filet mignon and the rest of the male population is ground round."

House chuckled: "You're comparing me to the most tender and expensive cut of beefcake? I like it."

He bent his head and gently brushed his lips against her. "You, my beautiful bride, are a priceless rare gem."

Unaccustomed to such a verbal declaration of his feelings, his speech faltered and he quickly covered up by planting a kiss on Issy's lips. Their bodies pressed closer together as the kiss deepened.

Finally they had to break for air. House looked into Issy's eyes and saw the love and desire that dwelt within. He cupped her cheek and said: "As lovely as you look, I've been waiting all night to get you out of the dress and see what's underneath."

She teased: "You just want to look? That's all?"

He growled: "No, that's not all and you know it. It's time for the groom to claim his marital rights."

With his hand in the small of her back, he steered her towards the bedroom door. But before they could cross the threshold into the room, he stopped her.

She gave him a questioningly look. He let out a small growl and then scooped her up into his arms. Taking small careful steps and using the doorframe for support, House carried his bride over the threshold into the bedroom.

As much as he wanted to carry her all the way to the bed, he didn't want to tempt fate. If his leg went into a spasm, it would kill the other pleasures that he had planned for the evening. Carrying Issy the few short steps over the threshold was sufficient to satisfy the primal urge of 'capturing' his bride.

"Mine." He whispered as he gently set her down.

Issy reached up and gently cupped his cheek. "And you are mine."

After exchanging a long loving look, Issy's fingers got busy unbuttoning the jacket of House's tuxedo.

He chuckled: "No shy blushing bride about you. You're as eager to get on with the action as the groom is."

"You know it."

House allowed her to remove his jacket, tie and shirt before steering her over to the bed. He sat and pulled her in between his legs.

"Did I tell you how beautiful you looked tonight? That dress make you look just like a princess. Now, how do I get you out of it?"

Issy giggled and turned around to reveal the long row of buttons that closed up the back of her dress.

House groaned: "No wonder it took you so long to get dressed. Damn, woman, why did you pick such a difficult dress to get out of?"

Her body shook with laughter. "Cuz it looked so good on me."

House smirked and started unfastening each button. Finally the long row was finished; he gathered the skirt and lifted the dress over her head. Knowing that she wanted to keep the dress in good shape, he carefully draped it over a chair and then turned to face his bride.

Her appearance knocked the breath out of him. His gorgeous bride stood before him in a white satin bustier, white lace thong panties and white thigh-high stay-up stockings. She was so stunning and sexy that all he could do was stare like a horny teenager.

Issy teased: "Cat got your tongue?"

House's left eyebrow rose. "Your pussy will have my tongue in just a minute."

Two quick steps and House had her in his arms. Issy squealed as they fell onto the bed together.

Bodies pressed tightly together, House lifted her leg and wrapped it around his waist, pressing his aching need against her center. "You sexy little vixen. You see what you do to me."

Issy cupped his face in both of her hands. "I take it you like my bridal lingerie."

House chuckled: "Oh, yes."

His lips crashed down on hers, their tongues tangoed as his hands stroked the length of her back, cupping the cheeks of her ass and then finally slipping between her legs.

He broke the kiss with a smile. "Someone's wet for me."

"You look damn sexy in a tux and even sexier out of it. But your belt is stabbing me. These pants have got to go."

Again he scooped her up into his arms and eased her up the bed, settling her head on the pillow with her hair cascading over it.

"Don't move."

He whispered as he eased off the bed. His eyes never left hers as he stood up to remove the rest of his clothes. He unbuckled his belt, unzipped his trousers and pushed them down to the floor. He stepped out of them and kicked them to the side. The only remaining article of clothing on his body was a pair of black silk briefs that barely contained his straining erection.

Unconsciously Issy licked her lips and spread her legs just a bit wider, an action that did not go unnoticed by her husband. She was ready for him, and he for her, but he needed to slow things down, or their first lovemaking as a married couple would be over in a matter of minutes.

He lay down next to her and pulled her into his arms. Bodies entwined, they kissed long and deep, their need for each other as great as their need for oxygen. After several long minutes of lip-lock, House eased Issy onto her back again. His lips found the sensitive spot on her neck and he nipped at it, and then soothed it with his tongue. Her head tilted back, granting him greater access to her neck, and he kissed his way slowly down her neck and across her collarbones.

The satin bustier had hook-and-eye fasteners in the front and House popped open several of them, just enough to expose the girls, nipples erect with excitement. He took the right one into his mouth, alternating between teasing it with his tongue and suckling it hard. Not wanting to play favorites, House spent an equal amount of time with the left nipple as Issy groaned with pleasure at his ministrations.

His hand roamed between her legs and found her tiny thong panties to be soaking wet. It was time for them to go, and for his tongue to enjoy his favorite dessert. One quick jerk and the panties were torn from her body and tossed onto the floor. His action caused Issy to gasp in surprise, but soon she was moaning with delight as House's tongue started pleasuring her. While he teased her little button, two fingers slipped in and out of her wetness, her excitement building with each thrust. Then he spread her lips with his thumbs and fucked her with his tongue as his nose continued to nudge her clit into higher planes of pleasure.

Her back arched and Issy screamed out: "Oh, God, Greg, I'm going to come. Fuck me; fuck me! I want to come with you inside of me."

House needed no further instructions; Mt. Gregory was more than ready for spelunking in his favorite cave. House shoved his briefs off and positioned himself at her entrance, vowing to himself to take it slowly. At first contact, Issy's eyes rolled back in her head and her body thrust against him, anxious for deeper penetration. Her passion further enflamed his own, and he thrust hard into her. Issy let out a loud cry of pleasure and wrapped one stocking-clad leg around his hips. House tried to slow down, but he had been waiting so long for this moment, that he found it impossible to rein in his passions. He thrust hard and deep into his wife's willing body, expertly hitting her G-spot and making her climax with a loud cry. A few more thrusts and he fell over the edge with her.

He collapsed on top of her, his breath coming in shallow gasps. A part of his semi-conscious brain told him to roll off of his wife, but as he tried to, she clung to him with all four limbs wrapped around him.

"Stay. I like it when you're on top of me this way."

House remained where he was, but managed to shift some of his weight to his elbows and one knee so that Issy's body was not bearing his full weight. After a few minutes, Issy let out a sigh. "Ummmmm. That was fabulous. I have the sexiest husband on earth."

House chuckled as he rolled them onto their sides. "Glad you think so. I do know that I have the sexiest wife. Which reminds me; now that we're hitched, you do realize that we have to re-christen the house all over again."

Issy stretched and let out a sexy little mew. "Do we? OK. I like that idea. Ummm, and I can't wait to christen our hotel room in Paris too."

"Maybe we can join the mile-high club on the flight over."

Issy giggled and gave him a saucy look: "Maybe we can. You said it was a 6-hour flight. How will I be able to keep my hands off of you for that length of time?"

"I think newlyweds on long flights should be given special consideration when it comes to that. Curtains around their seats and things like that."

Issy cupped his face with her hands. "I can't wait to see Paris with you. I still can't believe you are taking me to the most romantic city in the world for our honeymoon."

House gave her a quick peck on her lips. "Why not? You've always wanted to go there. We'll see the art museums, eat some delicious food and have fantastic sex in the city of _love_."

She nodded but her expression grew thoughtful as her hands caressed his face. "I just never thought I'd get so lucky, to find such a wonderful man who loves me as much as you do."

They shared gentle kisses and then suddenly House exclaimed: "The song is wrong".

Issy frowned: "What do you mean? Which song?"

"The one that was playing when we walked down the aisle. _'Papa Gene's_ _Blues'._ The lyrics go _'I have no more than I did before'_, but that's not true."

He paused for a moment and then went on: "I have so much more than I did before and now I do have all that I need, all that I want and that's you, my Issy-belle. All I want, all I need, is you."

Then he smacked his forehead and rolled his eyes. "I must be in love; I'm constantly quoting sappy song lyrics to you. I don't know how you can stand the corn-pone crap that comes out of my mouth."

Issy gave him a radiant smile: "As the songwriter said, cuz now I have all that I need. Cuz I love you and I know you love me."

House smiled as he eased Issy onto her back again. "He got those last two lines right."

Her eyes twinkled with mischief: "Show me how much."

He positioned himself between her spread legs and cupped her face with his hands. "Every day, baby, every day, until death we do part."

+++++ The end ++++++

**A/N: Yes, this is really truly the end. There is a short epilogue to follow, but that is truly all. Thank you to everyone for reading, faving and reviewing this very long fic! I really appreciate it. **


	96. Chapter 96

**Chapter 96 Epilogue**

_Late Afternoon, Thursday Oct 30th, 2008_

The team was relaxing in the conference room, as they didn't have a case at the moment. House and Issy had left for their Parisian honeymoon on Sunday afternoon. Everyone had finished his or her own clinic hours for the month, plus House's, so they were taking a well-deserved break from the action. Cameron and Chase had joined them, taking a break from their respective positions. They were swapping _'can you believe House did'_ stories when a tall, slender brunette walked into the room.

Three sets of jaws dropped at her appearance and the other three faces gazed questioningly at the stranger who had boldly strolled into the conference room and asked: "Where's Greg?"

Not _'Where's House?'_ Kutner noted; she was asking for _Greg_ as if she knew the world famous diagnostician on a very intimate level. He also wondered about the daggers that were shooting out of Cameron's eyes towards the stranger.

Chase answered her question in a casual tone. "He's not here."

The woman rolled her eyes in a rather House-like manner. "I can see that, Dr. Chase; my question was: where is he?"

Replying in the same casual manner, Chase answered: "He's on his honeymoon."

The woman burst out laughing. "That's a joke! Greg House, married? Yeah, right. Seriously, where is he? I really need to talk to him."

Intrigued by the strange woman, Kutner answered this time. "Chase is telling the truth. He's in Paris on his honeymoon. By the way, who are you?"

Crossing his arms across his chest, Foreman answered: "That's Stacy Warner, House's ex."

Thirteen glanced at the woman and then back at Foreman. "The one who?"

Her voice trailed off but there was no need to finish that question. Foreman nodded his answer. "The one and the same."

The woman's face colored at the mention of that sensitive subject. "Thanks for introducing me to the whole group, Dr. Foreman. Now, again, I'm asking, where is Greg? I'm sure you can come up with something better than the honeymoon gag."

Six hands pulled six cell phones out of six pockets. Fingers quickly found photo files and flashed the pictures to the intruder. On every phone was a photo of a tux-clad House holding a bridal-gown-clad Issy in his arms.

When she was sure that Stacy had gotten a good look, Cameron asked: "Believe us now?"

The shock was evident on Stacy's face. She started to sputter out a reply, but was saved by the appearance of Wilson at the conference room door.

"Stacy. This is a surprise. What are you doing here?"

"I came here looking for Greg and they told me that he's on, he's on, his."

She couldn't say the word; she merely blinked her eyes as if in shock.

Cameron clearly enunciated the word for her. "Hon-ey-moon. He's on his _honeymoon_ in Paris with his _wife_."

Stacy looked at Wilson for confirmation. He walked into the room and took her arm.

"Come to my office. We'll talk."

The buzz started as soon as they walked out of the door, but Stacy didn't let that deter her. She had to get to the bottom of this and James would tell her the truth.

Wilson didn't say a word until they had entered his office and the door was firmly shut behind them. He motioned her to one of the chairs in front of his desk while he took his own behind the desk. Once they were seated, he asked: "Why are you here?"

"I came to see Greg."

"Why?"

"I just, I just wanted to see him."

"Your husband sick with an undiagnosable illness again, or did you just want some curry?"

Stacy's jaw dropped. "He told you about that?"

Wilson nodded; Stacy blushed but gamely went on. "Sometimes I miss him. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is the pain that you could inflict on him by playing these games with him. But that won't matter any more. He is married now and he's happy. You could be standing there naked and he wouldn't give you a second glance."

Stacy gave him a disbelieving look. "_Seriously?_ Greg House is married and happy? When did pigs start flying?"

For an answer, Wilson brought up his email and searched until he found the one that he wanted. He opened the attachment and started the slide show. Photo after photo showed a smiling House with his lovely bride, their bodies in constant contact. Their arms circling each other as they swayed to the music for their first dance. His hand covered hers as they cut the wedding cake together. They posed for photos with the guests, House's arm firmly around Issy's waist. Wilson stopped the slide show on his favorite photo; the one that had been taken right after the ceremony had ended. Issy had her hand on his cheek and House was bending down, about to kiss her again. They were both smiling and anyone with decent vision could see the love that those two people had for each other.

Wilson said: "Last Saturday."

A stunned Stacy looked away from the computer screen and stammered: "What?"

"Pigs started flying last Saturday; that's when the wedding took place."

She shook her head. "I can't believe it."

He pointed to the screen. "There's the proof. The team, Cuddy, we were all there. I got an email from them on their honeymoon. There are more pictures if you want to see them. The two of them in a café, in front of the Eiffel Tower."

Stacy quickly interrupted: "No, no. That's OK. It's just, I never, I just never thought."

"You never thought he'd find someone else, did you? You thought he'd always be there for you."

Her silence gave Wilson the affirmative answer that he expected.

In an unusually harsh tone, Wilson went on: "He's moved on. And you should too. If you want curry, Mehek is just up the road. Their lamb curry is to die for."

Stacy narrowed her eyes at the doctor. "Funny man. I moved on a long time ago, remember? I married years ago."

Wilson tilted his head and stared at her. "So you did. And yet, you keep coming back to Princeton. You just can't quite get House out of your system."

She glanced back at the computer screen. "He's a tough one to let go of. He can make you absolutely insane and yet he's so exciting at the same time."

"He's found happiness with a good woman; one who loves him for the man he is and doesn't try to change him into someone that he isn't. And one that doesn't run back to her _husband_ when she tires of him."

Ignoring his comments, Stacy went on: "She looks rather young for him."

Wilson shrugged: "Age is just a number. Issy loves him and makes him happy."

"Issy?"

"Short for Isabelle. That's his wife's name."

"Ah."

Stacy stared at the screen for a few more minutes and then stood up. "I guess I should be going. I can't say it was a pleasure to see you, but at least I know the score now."

Just as Wilson opened the door to escort Stacy out, Natalie appeared, fist raised as if to knock on the door.

She smiled excitedly when she saw him. "Hi darlin'. I was just wondering if you were ready to leave for the day."

Then her eyes lit on Stacy and she said: "Oops. I'm sorry; I didn't realize that you had someone in the office."

Wilson kissed her cheek and said: "It's fine. She was just leaving."

With his arm around Natalie, he turned and said: "Sweetheart, this is Stacy Warner. Stacy, this is my girlfriend, Natalie Walsh."

Stacy smirked: "Someone else likes them young too."

Wilson replied calmly: "As I said before, age is just a number. What's important is what two people feel for each other."

Natalie scrutinized the other woman closely. "Stacy Warner? Are you House's ex-girlfriend? The one who let the doctors hack off his thigh muscle while he was in a medically induced coma?"

Stacy rolled her eyes.

Wilson smirked and answered: "Yes, she's the one."

Natalie's eyes widened: "Oh, boy, it's a good thing Issy's not here. She'd have some choice words for you."

Stacy frowned: "I'm sure she would and her husband too. Good-bye James. Enlightening to see you again. Don't bother to show me out. I know the way."

With that, Stacy stalked out of the office and headed towards the elevator. Wilson and Natalie stepped out into the hall to watch her retreat. Wilson noted that the team, still assembled in the conference room, was watching also.

Natalie said: "Wow. So that's the bitch who wrecked House's leg?"

"Yep, that's her."

"What was she doing here?"

"Checking up on House for old times' sake."

"Bet she was surprised to hear that he got married."

"Umm, I'd say 'shocked' is the more appropriate word."

"Are you going to tell House and Issy about this?"

"I don't know. What do you think?"

"It might be a humorous story to tell over dinner one night after they get back. And if we don't tell them, someone in that bunch will."

Natalie jerked her chin towards the conference room where it was obvious that the group of doctors were still talking about Stacy's appearance at PPTH.

Wilson nodded. "You're right. We'll take them out for curry when they get back and tell them all about it then."

Natalie replied: "Sounds like a plan to me."

"You said something about leaving for the day?"

"I'm ready if you are."

"Let me just grab my briefcase and jacket and we can go home."

"You mentioned curry. Do you want that for dinner tonight?"

"Naw, let's wait and have Indian when House and Issy get back. He's got a funny story about curry that he could tell over dinner."

**The End**

**A/N: The image of all the Fellows flashing their cell phones at Stacy crept into my brain on little cat feet and wouldn't leave. Therefore my muse was forced to write an entire epilogue around that one image. I hope you enjoyed this little bit of silliness at the end of this long fic. **

**A MILLION thank you's to everyone who read, reviewed, faved and added me to your alert list. I tried to thank you all individually and hope that I didn't miss anyone. I am so touched that you enjoy my scribblings so much that you want more. Thank you, thank you, thank you. glennie**


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